<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Blessings From the Past by crgb1234</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27253300">Blessings From the Past</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/crgb1234/pseuds/crgb1234'>crgb1234</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>EXO (Band)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - High School, Fluff, Friendship/Love, M/M, Mpreg, Post Mpreg, Slice of Life, Slow Burn</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-07 00:35:55</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>9</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>30,336</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27253300</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/crgb1234/pseuds/crgb1234</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>The new guy was such a mysterious contradiction. Cute but also handsome, quiet but sometimes loud, confident but still unsure, polite but quick with a comeback, small but so tall. All these things were making Chanyeol's head spin.</p>
<p>But he knew one thing for sure.<br/>He wanted him.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>(Self-prompt story written for BMF2020)</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Byun Baekhyun/Park Chanyeol, Do Kyungsoo | D.O/Kim Jongin | Kai</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>126</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>#𝓑𝓪𝓫𝔂𝕄𝕒𝕜𝕚𝕟𝕘𝕱𝖊𝖘𝖙𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟎</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. MONDAY</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Code : Self Prompt<br/>Pairing : Byun Baekhyun/Park Chanyeol<br/>Carrier : Byun Baekhyun<br/>Pregnancy : Post-pregnancy<br/>Babies : One<br/>Prompt :<br/>The new guy was such a mysterious contradiction. Cute but also handsome, quiet but sometimes loud, confident but still unsure, polite but quick with a comeback, small but so tall. All these things were making Chanyeol's head spin.</p>
<p>But he knew one thing for sure.<br/>He wanted him.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>*MONDAY*</p>
<p>On Monday, Chanyeol walked through the high school campus gates like he always did every weekday morning - just as the first bell rang. Only 5 weeks into the school year and he already had the timing perfected, even down to the minute that he parked his blue BMW in the school parking lot. The teachers would all be headed towards their classrooms within 5 minutes of the morning bell and then the second bell of the morning would signal the start of class. Getting to campus at the first bell meant he wouldn't have to deal with a lot of extra attention.</p>
<p>Chanyeol brought his coffee cup up to his mouth, enjoying the rich flavor as he made his way thru the school doors. Having his family's name on the donor faceplate of the library door didn't hurt his chances of breezing into the building whenever he pleased. The Parks were one of the most generous families of benefactors to the elite private school, and Chanyeol didn't mind that everyone on the school campus knew who he was.</p>
<p>Park Chanyeol was a tall, rich, handsome, <strong>BMOC</strong> - Big Man On Campus. Whether they were referring to his height or his popularity didn't matter to him. </p>
<p>At the beginning of the school year he had sweet-talked the school guidance counselor into getting his classes arranged so his first class every day was study hall in the library. And all the hall monitors swooned over him, which meant he could come and go as he pleased. He didn't abuse this power, but it was nice to have.</p>
<p>Chanyeol made himself comfortable in a remote corner of the library, chair pushed back slightly with his long legs propped up on a table, coffee cup in one hand and a novel in the other. One of the main reasons he enjoyed his first period study hall was that not many others had chosen this time slot so there was a strong chance he wouldn't be bothered by anyone during the first period class and he could read to his heart's content. Life was good.</p>
<p>The first period crawled by, but eventually the bell rang to signal the end of class.</p>
<p>Chanyeol pulled his long legs off the table. After making a mental note of the page he was on, he laid the book where his feet had just been. He knew it would be there tomorrow, since all the library staff were aware of his habit and always left his book of choice alone for him to pick it back up the next day. The only time this ever changed was when he would return whatever book he had finished back to the shelves and pick up a new one to start reading. For obvious reasons, it was appropriate that the donor plaque with his family name was on the <span class="u">library</span> doors.</p>
<p>The chaos in the hallways between classes was always entertaining. As he walked, Chanyeol kept his elbows in, his backpack slung over his shoulder casually, and his coffee cup close to his chest. Experience told him this was the safest way to keep his cool exterior look while preventing any mishaps to himself or his morning caffeine. Being tall meant he could usually see what bumbling idiot, embarrassed nerd, or flirting student might be heading into his personal space, but it was better to be safe than sorry.</p>
<p>Today was no exception. As he rounded the corner, he side stepped to avoid being surrounded by the usual group of overly stuck-up girls with their designer clothes, expensive handbags, over-done make-up, and I-Know-You-Want-Me-But-I'm-Too-Good-For-You attitudes.</p>
<p>He knew what was coming. </p>
<p>"Oh, Chanyeo~lee..!" </p>
<p>Yep, like clockwork.</p>
<p>Chanyeol half-turned to camouflage his rolling eyes, while trying to appear as tho he was paying attention. "Taeyeon.." he responded with no emotion. </p>
<p>"Do you like my outfit today? I bought it this weekend.." The expensively dressed girl batted her eyelashes and flounced to make her hair and skirt bounce a little.</p>
<p>"I didn't notice it." Chanyeol made a point to never lie. Trying to remember the details of the lie later would only lead to disaster.</p>
<p>"You didn't notice my outfit? But you walked right by me!" the girl huffed and stomped her designer shoe lightly on the floor.</p>
<p>"Exactly." he deadpanned.</p>
<p>The pretty girl huffed again but Chanyeol just lifted his coffee cup to take a drink as he turned away, ignoring her as well as the others' eyes on him. He was used to being watched, and today was no different. The squawking of the female blended into the noise around him as he continued his trek down the hallway to his AP Calculus class.</p>
<p>Everyone in the school knew the rich boy. His dad was a high-powered attorney and the whole family came from money, but he wasn't an ass about it. He also had a smart head on his shoulders. The college-level class was the hardest subject of his day, and Chanyeol had arranged for it to be his first "real" class each day so he could cruise thru the rest of his day with ease. He knew he wouldn't be bothered by anyone during the second period class either, since the only students that took AP Calculus were bookworm-types that would be too caught up in the curriculum or too nervous to talk to him.</p>
<p>Chanyeol flopped into his usual seat in the next-to-last row over near the window. With his height he could still see the chalkboard, but this seat also gave him the opportunity to enjoy the scenery outside if the class became too boring. He liked that no one sat in the seat next to him either, so if he wanted to he could stretch out his long limbs without being in anyone's way.</p>
<p>The bell rang to indicate the start of the class period and the teacher went over to close the classroom door, but was stopped by the school principal coming into the room. Trailing behind the older man was a young-looking boy of average height with brunet hair and round thin-rimmed glasses. The principal gestured to the boy as he addressed the teacher and students in the classroom. </p>
<p>"This is Mr. Byun Baekhyun. He is a senior that is new to this school, so let's all do our best to make him feel welcome!" The new student bowed to the class as he was being introduced. Once the principal stopped talking, the boy raised up from his bow, soft hair bouncing a little as he smiled at the students in the classroom. "Nice to meet all of you. I will do my best to learn your names and get to know you so that we may enjoy speaking freely soon."</p>
<p>Chanyeol had been sneakily playing a game on his phone when the principal started talking. But when the tall boy heard the lilting voice of the newcomer, it sounded a little familiar so he put his phone away and straightened up in his seat to better see what this new student looked like. When he did, he quickly decided this day was going to be one he wouldn't forget for a long while.</p>
<p>The new boy was a looker, and definitely Chanyeol's type - not too short, not too tall, slight build with wide shoulders, a soft smile, bright sparkling eyes. Easily an 8-out-of-10 in his opinion. Of course, there was always room for improvement, so Chanyeol couldn't place him as a 10. Yet. </p>
<p>"Welcome Mr. Byun! Sit wherever you'd like and we'll go ahead and get started. OK class, let's open our books to page 97. I'm assuming you all reviewed your worksheets last night..." The teacher's voice drifted into the usual monotone delivery as Chanyeol watched the new boy walk up the row towards the empty chair next to him. At the last minute the boy turned the other way and sat in an empty seat next to a dark-headed boy with thick-rimmed glasses that looked somewhat like an owl. That boy usually acted like he didn't want people to talk to him. To Chanyeol's amazement, the thick-glasses boy smiled nicely at the new boy and began showing him the worksheet the teacher had mentioned. The new boy nodded and leaned over to whisper about something as he pointed on the page. </p>
<p>Chanyeol sat staring as the two of them interacted quietly, until the teacher suddenly decided to call on Chanyeol to answer a question. The lanky student acted as tho he wasn't surprised, and he answered the question easily, which seemed to amaze the boys sitting on the opposite side of the aisle. He smirked at both of them, which made the dark-headed boy blush and turn away, but the brunet only slightly raised his eyebrow then gave his own slight smirk and turned away. Chanyeol kept the wry smile on his face as he turned his attention back to the teacher's boring monologue.</p>
<p>This class suddenly became interesting.</p>
<p>When the bell rang to end the period, Chanyeol casually observed the new boy leaving the classroom with his new friend, but lost them in the flurry of students flocking in the hallways between classes. Not a big deal. He would probably see the new boy later.</p>
<p>Chanyeol slung his backpack over his shoulder and dumped his now-empty coffee cup into a hallway trashcan before entering a different room for the next class of his day. In this period it was easy to get away with playing games on his phone, so even though he took notes occasionally, he had something to entertain him as he dealt with another boring teacher.</p>
<p>The third class ended and Chanyeol slung his backpack over his shoulder once again, heading to the cafeteria. He bought a sandwich and orange juice, then headed outdoors to the commons area right outside. He put his backpack on the ground next to a large tree and plopped down. As he twisted open the top of his juice, a tanned boy with light brown hair ran over and sat down on the ground beside him.</p>
<p>"Hey Yeol. Is he here yet?"</p>
<p>Chanyeol swallowed a gulp of his orange juice. "Haven't had a chance to look..." He took a bite of his sandwich as the tanned boy beside him suddenly tensed up.</p>
<p>"There he is! Oh.. he's got someone with him today.." The excitement in the brown haired boy's voice gave way to curiosity laced with disappointment.</p>
<p>Chanyeol looked up at the window that looked in on the cafeteria. The dark-headed boy with thick-rimmed glasses was walking past the window with the new boy from before at his side. Both had smiles on their faces and were obviously deep in conversation. "Oh that new guy.. ? I think his name is Byun something.."</p>
<p>The brown haired boy nodded. "I thought he looked new.. Wait- You talked to him?"</p>
<p>"Nah. He's in my AP Calculus class." the lanky boy said, taking another swallow of orange juice.</p>
<p>"He looks pretty comfortable with my Soo.."</p>
<p>"He's not yours if you haven't asked him to be, dumbass.." Chanyeol scoffed as he took another bite of his sandwich. </p>
<p>"Whatever.. He will be soon. Anyway, what's with this new guy..? You don't usually give a shit about learning newbie's names. You into him or something?" The brown haired boy wiggled his eyebrows as he leaned over to bump his friend with his shoulder. </p>
<p>"Wha-? What are you on about? The principal made a big deal about introducing him, so I had to pay attention - that's all.. Shut up!" Chanyeol leaned over, bumping his friend back with his shoulder. The two friends grinned at each other as they broke out into chuckles, continuing to bump each other back and forth a bit with their shoulders. The whole time they didn't realize there were two sets of eyes sitting side-by-side and watching them through the window. </p>
<p>About twenty minutes later the bell rang, signaling the end of the lunch period. Chanyeol got up, dusting off his pants. "Come on Nini.. let's get to class."</p>
<p>"I told you not to call me that!" the tanned boy swiped at his friend but missed as Chanyeol sidestepped smoothly, still grinning.</p>
<p>"Ok, Mr. Basketball- oof!" He hadn't counted on his friend swinging back with the other arm, which had collided with his stomach. "Easy there <span class="u"><strong>JONGIN</strong></span>..!"</p>
<p>The brown haired boy laughed without remorse. "Serves you right! And <span class="u"><strong>YOU'D</strong></span> be Mr. Basketball if you'd just give in and join the team already!"</p>
<p>Chanyeol just laughed as he looped his arm over his friend's shoulder. "Nah, I get enough exercise pushing my luck. I don't need a coach yelling at me every time I don't show up for a couple of extra hours of torture every day!"</p>
<p>"YoUr ToO sMaRt FoR tHaT~!" Jongin mocked as the two continued laughing. "Yeah, yeah... Let's get that huge brain of yours to class before we're late.."</p>
<p>Chanyeol agreed by directing them into the school building with his backpack slung on one shoulder and his other arm still slung loosely over his friend's shoulder. The two sets of eyes were among many now that appreciated the view of the good-looking guys as they left the area.</p>
<p>Chanyeol and Jongin maneuvered around the rush of students leaving the cafeteria and making a ruckus at the lockers and doorways as they headed to their World History class. They settled into the last two seats in the back of the classroom and pulled out their tablets. It was easier than carrying heavy textbooks or having to deal with lockers, and both boys had talked their parents into buying the tablets to use for their classes.</p>
<p>Jongin slept as the teacher droned on in the lecture, and Chanyeol thumbed over his tablet as he let his mind wander. His next class would be AP Music Appreciation. That was his last class every day, and the most enjoyable for him. It was an auditioned class and wasn't exactly easy, but he liked the challenges the course gave him and he often felt the time went by entirely too fast. He hoped in the future to be a music producer, and that class gave him better understanding of the music world while also providing more college credit hours. Plus sometimes he got to play instruments or sing. A perfect win-win in his opinion.</p>
<p>As the tedious lecture on World History started to draw to a close, Chanyeol deliberately bumped the chair of the sleeping tanned boy, waking him with a jolt. As soon as his friend sat up and wiped the drool from his face, the bell rang to indicate the end of the period.</p>
<p>"You've got that time-keeping down to a science. Were you a clock in your past life or something?" Jongin grumbled good-naturedly as they left the classroom.</p>
<p>Chanyeol chuckled but didn't reply as they made their way through the usual disjointed swarm of students, down a long side corridor and around a sharp corner. By this point the crowds had thinned out so there was less chance of being bumped by a random student. However, Chanyeol still felt someone bump into him, almost deliberately. </p>
<p>"Oh! I'm so sorry Chanyeolee~!" the faked sugary voice made Chanyeol roll his eyes before he turned slightly towards the girl. </p>
<p>"Taeyeon.."  he responded, showing no emotion. </p>
<p>"Are you ok? Did I hurt you?" the girl continued, putting her expertly manicured hands on Chanyeol's bicep and chest area. She blinked innocently at him.</p>
<p>"I'm fine." he said, looking disinterested as he started to turn away.</p>
<p>"Are you sure?" The flirty tone was unmistakable, but before the girl could do anything else, her hands were swatted away by the brown-haired boy. </p>
<p>"He said he's fine." Jongin gave the girl a cold look and then turned and followed Chanyeol who had walked away towards the Music Room at the end of the hall. The girl scowled as she followed them and started to say something again, but Chanyeol held his hand up in an action to shush her. His attention wasn't on her, but on the scene that was visible from the open door to the classroom. </p>
<p>Inside, the boy with the thick-rimmed glasses was standing beside a piano and singing along with the new boy, who was also playing the piano, accompanying them. Their voices blended in perfect harmony and the notes of the piano piece wove in and around them beautifully as they sang.The overhead lights shown off the new boy's glasses. The teacher and several students were sitting in the classroom, watching the enchanting scene. Chanyeol stood riveted as he watched just outside the doorway. </p>
<p>As soon as Jongin saw what was going on he had to stifle a squeal. "That's my- mm!" He whacked Chanyeol on the arm then wiggled in excitement as he tightly gripped the sleeve of the taller boy. None of the onlookers could take their eyes off the boys at the piano.</p>
<p>The girl behind them huffed in frustration from being ignored, then huffed again and stomped her foot after seeing what was taking the attention off of her. As the song came to an end and those watching in the room erupted into applause, the girl abruptly pushed in between the two guys at the door to go into the room and claim a seat. She watched with critical eyes as the two boys at the piano bowed briefly. Chanyeol and Jongin just stood at the doorway, both entranced at what they had seen.</p>
<p>The teacher walked up to the boys at the piano. "You've both proved you belong in this class. Thank you Mr. Byun for convincing Mr. Doh to come and try out. Up until you came along he's resisted auditioning, even tho he obviously belongs here. And you do as well!"  The teacher then turned towards the doorway. "Mr. Park! Nice of you to join us.. and Mr. Kim, I believe you're late for practice!"  Jongin jumped guiltily from being singled out and he bowed quickly before rushing off towards the gym.</p>
<p>Chanyeol entered the room and placed his backpack on the floor as he sat in a seat near the front along the wall. The rest of the students all found their seats as the bell rang, and the teacher sat down at the piano. "Now.. Who can tell me the difference between these two chords?" he asked, playing two chords carefully and with a little space between them.</p>
<p>As one student raised their hand to give the answer, Chanyeol turned in his seat to get a little more comfortable. His eyes unexpectedly met with the hazel ones of the new boy who apparently had been staring from diagonally behind him. The taller tried to play it cool with a slight smirk. That was met by a smirk and a slightly raised eyebrow from the boy, who slowly turned his head back towards the front of the classroom, keeping his gaze until the last second.</p>
<p>Chanyeol felt a little unnerved. He couldn't explain it, but without speaking a word to him, this kid had his attention. </p>
<p>"...And yes, it <strong>DOES</strong> sound a bit different when played on the guitar. Mr. Park, would you care to assist us by giving a demonstration?" Chanyeol snapped out of his puzzled daze as he heard his name being called by the teacher.</p>
<p>The lanky student got out of his seat and made his way over to two guitars propped on stands next to some stools in the corner of the room. Carefully taking the acoustic, he sat on a stool and propped his leg up to set the guitar at a comfortable level to play. Some of the students in the room were already making swooning noises and actions, but he ignored them and looked over at the teacher. The teacher played a chord then indicated for Chanyeol to play as well. He easily played the same chord.</p>
<p>The teacher nodded. "These chords are often found in Jazz compositions. Care to join me in a little demonstration, Mr. Park?"</p>
<p>Chanyeol gave a grin as he adjusted his hair back out of his eyes a little. The teacher started playing a jazzy sounding melody on the piano and Chanyeol waited a second then jumped in with a counter melody, both players deliberately emphasizing whenever they played either of the chords the teacher had just discussed with the class. After a minute they finished with a flourish and most of the class broke out into applause, with a couple of whoops for good measure.</p>
<p>Chanyeol placed the guitar back on the stand and gave a short bow before heading back to his seat. Once again his eyes met hazel ones, and the new boy gave a slight nod as he continued to applaud along with the other students. The teacher raised his hand to regain order and stop the clapping, and both boys turned their gaze back to the front of the room.</p>
<p>If Chanyeol had looked a little longer he would have seen the dark-haired boy nudging the brunet and them giggling quietly together a second. Chanyeol didn't notice, but the girl sitting a little further back in the room certainly did. </p>
<p>The class progressed smoothly, with the time seeming to pass quickly like it always did in Music Appreciation. All too soon the bell was ringing to show the end of the period, and the students began gathering their belongings to leave. The eager chatter of the students mixed with the noises from those already in the hallways leaving from other classrooms. </p>
<p>Chanyeol gave a polite smile to the teacher and grabbed his backpack, slinging it over his shoulder as he stood up. Having been seated near the door, he was able to get out of the room quickly. He made his way to the far wall so as to avoid the rest of the students that were filling the hallways. As he turned to leave the area, he noticed the new brunet and the dark-headed boy talking animatedly as they left the classroom together. Chanyeol paused just long enough to be behind the pace of the two boys, but as the three made their way down the hallway his long legs soon made him overtake their slower walking.</p>
<p>By the time they got to their lockers, the taller had made the turn past them, headed towards some side exit doors. If he had turned around, he would have seen the new boy being scolded by his dark-headed friend for staring at the back of the lanky-limbed senior a little too long. </p>
<p>Chanyeol felt the usual weight of eyes on him as he made his way through the doors and out to the parking lot. When he got to his car he saw a note written on pink paper stuck under the windshield wiper. Chanyeol scoffed. A few gasps from onlookers were heard as he retrieved the paper and glanced over it, but then disappointed sighs were heard as he folded the paper a couple times and tossed it into a nearby garbage can. This was nothing new, since everyone knew the BMOC didn't bother with romance. He may occasionally flirt, but it was never serious, and he never let anyone in, romantically. The writer of the letter never had a chance. </p>
<p>A group of girls in designer clothes stood in the doorway of the side exit, and a certain one huffed as she watched Chanyeol drive away. </p>
<p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. TUESDAY</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>*TUESDAY*</p>
<p>The next day went very similarly.</p>
<p>The lanky senior arrived at the last minute for first period study hall in the library with coffee in hand, settling into his preferred spot. He picked up the book on the table and began reading where he left off from the day before. </p>
<p>The AP Calculus class had the usual smart kids along with the two boys seated opposite him taking notes while occasionally glancing his way, and the lecture by the teacher was just as boring as usual. Chanyeol told himself the only reason he stretched out sideways in the seat was because he felt like he needed the space today. It wasn't because he wanted the attention of the brunet. It only partially worked, but also made the teacher decide to call on the tall boy to answer a few more questions than usual. Chanyeol answered every question accurately, but to make sure he wasn't the only one called on he wiggled his eyebrows till the new boy giggled. The teacher took the bait and asked Baekhyun the next question, but he answered it quickly and with no issues so the teacher left them both alone after that. The brunet waited til the teacher resumed the lecture to turn to Chanyeol and stick out his tongue quickly in a playful manner.</p>
<p>Chanyeol again felt a little unnerved. He wasn't sure what to do from here, but the boy had his attention. Before he could think of what to do in retaliation, the period ended.</p>
<p>He didn't have anyone to distract him enough in the next class and boredom quickly set in. After whispering with the kid in front of him to let him copy notes later, Chanyeol laid his head down and napped through the rest of the teacher's lecture.</p>
<p>By the time he got to lunch Chanyeol was ready for the week to be over, and it was only Tuesday. He bought his usual sandwich and orange juice, and then made his way over to the customary spot next to the tree in the commons area. Jongin was already there, seated on the ground, barely propped up against the large tree, hugging a water bottle, and half asleep. </p>
<p>Chanyeol nudged his leg as he sat down next to his friend. "Did you get out of class early or did you skip again?" he asked.</p>
<p>"Mr. Lee dismissed us early when he got an important phone call." Jongin mumbled. "I wasn't going to turn down a chance at a nap."</p>
<p>"Wonder what the phone call was.."</p>
<p>"Don't know, don't care." Jongin said lazily as he sat up and stretched, his shirt raising up at the waistline to show a sliver of skin as his arms went in the air. At that moment he turned his gaze towards the cafeteria window then made a painful wheezing sound, bringing his hands down quickly.</p>
<p>Chanyeol whipped his head towards the window to see what his friend was reacting to. Standing at the window was the new kid and his friend. The dark-headed boy was staring with his mouth slightly open, which the brunet seemed to be laughing about. Jongin raised his hand in a shy wave, and the hazel-eyed boy grinned broadly, returning the wave enthusiastically. The dark-headed boy whipped his head around and grabbed his friend's arm, obviously in a panic, pulling his hand down and dragging the laughing boy away from the window.</p>
<p>Chanyeol chuckled as he opened his orange juice. "Looks like your infatuation might not be one-sided, Loverboy. You <span class="u"><strong>might</strong></span> actually have TWO admirers!"</p>
<p>Jongin recovered quickly and grinned back. "Sounds like <strong><span class="u">some</span></strong>body might be jea~lous~.." he singsonged.</p>
<p>"You know, for someone that chose basketball over music, you sure do a lot of singing.." the taller scoffed.</p>
<p>"And <span class="u"><strong>YOU</strong></span> do a lot of avoiding the subject.. C'mon. I know you man - you're interested in that new guy." Jongin said.</p>
<p>"I notice any new student in Music Appreciation class.."</p>
<p>Jongin looked smug. "He's not just in <span class="u"><strong>that</strong></span> class with you tho.." he said with a sly grin, leaning over to nudge his friend on the shoulder. </p>
<p>The taller took a quick drink of his orange juice then grumbled. "You know I don't do roma-"</p>
<p>"Romance, I <span class="u"><strong>KNOW</strong></span>. That blonde cutie with blue eyes stole your heart after you slept with him at that party two years ago and he ran away before you could get a name so now you don't wanna even try, <span class="u"><strong>I KNOW</strong></span>." Jongin rolled his eyes as he huffed, leaning against his friend in exasperation. "You're a <span class="u"><strong>SENIOR</strong></span> man! It's your last year of high school! Even if you don't want all those bimbos that keep throwing themselves at you, it won't hurt you to live a little!"</p>
<p>Chanyeol had been opening his sandwich but at the last words he turned to his friend with a deadpan look. "Do you hear yourself? '<em>It won't hurt..</em>' You know how long it took before I could even handle looking at blonde hair, so don't go there, man." </p>
<p>"Yeah, yeah.. I'm just looking out for you, Yeol. Sex only once in two years isn't healthy. If you don't get laid soon you're gonna explode or something! Besides, you know that dude didn't actually have blue eyes.." the tanned boy said, nudging his friend again.</p>
<p>"Yeah, yeah, shut up." the taller took a bite of his sandwich, indicating the end of that conversation. Jongin took a drink from his water bottle, then reached over and pulled Chanyeol's hand to get at the sandwich and took a bite. He grinned at the incredulous look the taller gave him as they both chewed. But then they swallowed their food and began to laugh.</p>
<p>Not noticing the hazel eyes and thick-rimmed glasses side by side, watching them again through the window. </p>
<p>Later that afternoon, just as Music Appreciation was starting, a cell phone rang out in the classroom. The new boy looked at his phone, then jumped up in distress and ran out of the room into the hall as he answered it. His dark-headed friend immediately went to the teacher and the two had an urgent whispering conversation. The rest of the students in the room were all whispering and talking quietly, obviously curious about what was happening.</p>
<p>Chanyeol didn't think twice before grabbing his bag and walking out of the room.</p>
<p>The brunet was still in the hallway, his hand over his mouth and obviously upset as he tried to talk quietly. "But is- Is he going to be ok..?! I <span class="u"><strong>KNOW</strong></span>.. I'm still at school but I'll get there somehow. They'll just have to suspend me for leaving without permission.... I don't <span class="u"><strong>care</strong></span>!.. <span class="u"><strong>DAMMIT HE'S MY</strong></span>-"</p>
<p>The large hand on his elbow startled the new student and he whipped his head up at the taller. There were tears streaming down his face, and Chanyeol felt his breath leave his lungs quickly.  </p>
<p>
  <em>Sweet boy with tears in his eyes.. So beautiful, even when he's drunk. </em>
</p>
<p>The strange feeling of déjà vu was quickly replaced with concern. "What do you need? I'll help." the taller said firmly, looking directly at the now sniffling boy who was wiping his tears under his glasses, still holding the phone to his ear. </p>
<p>"Can you take me to the hospital?" the urgent request was unexpected, but the taller didn't flinch. He nodded and put his hand at the lower back of the boy, ushering him toward to closest exit door. The brunet squinted as they made their way out into the sunlight, but spoke quickly into the phone, "I'm on my way!" then hung up.</p>
<p>Chanyeol directed them to his car and helped fasten the seatbelt for the trembling boy. As the taller climbed in the driver's seat and started the car, the brunet began putting in the hospital information in the GPS on his phone and turned up the volume. Chanyeol didn't question it, and followed the directions, leaving the school behind them. </p>
<p>Driving meant he couldn't watch the smaller boy as much as he wanted, but he did notice the brunet didn't seem to want to talk during the 15 minute trip. He just kept fidgeting with his phone, and bouncing his legs a little. At one point he took off his glasses to clean them with the bottom edge of his shirt, but he kept his face turned towards the window the whole time. As soon as they pulled into a parking spot Baekhyun undid his seatbelt and climbed out, closed the door quickly and ran towards the hospital emergency room entrance. Chanyeol followed him and came thru the doors just in time to hear the brunet's urgent inquiry at the front desk. "<strong>BYUN JUNSEO</strong>?" </p>
<p>The taller didn't want to intrude, but he had already decided he wasn't going to just leave, so he went over to a seat in a corner of the waiting room.  He watched as the nurse behind the desk looked at a chart and had a quick hushed conversation with the brunet, who then ran thru the side doors into the emergency room.</p>
<p>Chanyeol pulled out his phone and sent a text to Jongin, then pulled up the school office phone number. He made a quick call to explain their location to the school, doing his usual smooth talking to arrange for both of them to be officially excused for the rest of the day. Then the tall boy pulled up a game on his phone to pass the time as he waited.</p>
<p>He had just finished the third level on the game when a nurse came over and tapped him on the shoulder. "Excuse me? Are you Junseo's other father?" </p>
<p>Chanyeol blinked in surprise. "Umm.. I'm sorry, what?"</p>
<p>"I could tell because you look just like him!" she continued. "We don't have a lot of patients right now, and family members are allowed in the room, so you're welcome to go back there. After you go thru the doors, he's in the fourth room on the left." she smiled and nodded encouragingly.</p>
<p>The high school senior blinked again. "Umm.. thank..you?" </p>
<p>The nurse nodded then walked off and Chanyeol shook his head confusedly before getting to his feet. He had no idea why the nurse had said all that, but he wanted to find out if Baekhyun needed a ride home. He followed the nurse's instructions and made his way thru to the emergency ward. The lanky student stopped at the open door of the fourth room and knocked as he leaned his head inside. </p>
<p>The brunet and another man were standing on either side of a gurney-style bed that held a little boy, who appeared to be about a year old. The child was sleeping, and Baekhyun was lightly rubbing the child's face. The other man noticed Chanyeol at the doorway and got the smaller's attention gesturing towards the door. The brunet whipped his head around, then colored and began to stammer upon seeing the tall boy. " Ch-Chanyeol..! Um.." he turned his body, deliberately standing to shield the little boy on the bed. It was also obvious that Baekhyun had been crying again. </p>
<p>Chanyeol spoke gently and indicated to the child on the bed. "Is he going to be alright?"</p>
<p>Baekhyun stilled but then seemed to recover. "Oh, um..Yes! He'll be fine. Thanks."</p>
<p>"That's good." the taller smiled. "So.. do you need anything?" </p>
<p>The brunet opened his mouth heasitantly as tho to speak, but stopped as the other man came around the bed towards Chanyeol and stuck his hand out to shake in greeting. "Thank you so much for bringing Baek safely. I'm Junmyeon."</p>
<p>The tall boy shook the offered hand. "It was no problem. I was glad to help. Oh, and I'm Chanyeol." he said.</p>
<p>"I know." Junmyeon's smile was gentle, but his eyes seemed to be very sharp.</p>
<p>Chanyeol shifted nervously then cleared his throat. "So.. do you? Need anything?" he asked again, this time addressing his question to both of the males the room. </p>
<p>"Pa?" a weak child's voice startled all of them.</p>
<p>Baekhyun whipped around, leaning over the bed and caressing the child's cheek. "Hi Junnie!" he said happily in a soft voice. "You just took a really long nap. It's ok though and Papa is really happy to see you awake now..!" The brunet continued to talk sweetly and softly to the child.</p>
<p>Junmyeon leaned over and pushed the nurse-call button on the wall next to top of the bed. "They asked us to indicate as soon as Junseo woke up so they can check him over before deciding if he's on the mend enough to go home.' he explained.</p>
<p>The other man then went back over to the other side of the bed. Chanyeol stayed near the doorway, feeling a little like an intruder. He figured Junmyeon must be the child's parent and Baekhyun must be the older brother or something.</p>
<p>Until the child saw Junmyeon and greeted him with "-yeonnie!"</p>
<p>And Chanyeol had his answer.</p>
<p>Baekhyun was a father. </p>
<p>Chanyeol stood quietly by the door as he watched the scene before him. His mind was in a whirl. He wasn't upset about the existance of the child. Children are blameless in their creation. But the child was a product of Baekhyun having evidently gotten some girl pregnant. The concept of the brunet being straight was a little more upsetting to Chanyeol than he was willing to admit. </p>
<p>Baekhyun and Junmyeon continued to talk to the little boy on the bed. The child was obviously still a little weak, but was softly babbling in baby-talk and even giggling. As the brunet interacted with his son, he moved just enough that Chanyeol was able to get a better look at the child. The little boy definitely had Baekhyun's perky nose and sweet smile, but he also had cute ears that seemed a bit big for his head, and large expressive eyes that appeared very familiar to the tall guy standing by the door.</p>
<p>Chanyeol wasn't dumb.  He now understood what the nurse from before had meant. The child resembled him. A lot.</p>
<p>But how was this possible? </p>
<p>His inner thoughts were interrupted by Junmyeon speaking to him. "Would you like to meet him, Chanyeol?"</p>
<p>"Myeonnie!" Baekhyun's instant panicked whisper made the taller pause. </p>
<p>The lanky student smiled. "It's ok. I don't think Baekhyun wants anyone knowing about his son, so I totally get that he doesn't want to introduce us." The brunet had whipped around at Chanyeol's words, but now blinked in surprise as the tall senior continued. "Don't worry. I won't tell anyone. The idiots at school don't need to know about people's personal business."  </p>
<p>In his shock, the brunet had now moved completely over from in front of the child on the bed, and the little boy looked over at the taller with curiosity. "Ufff?" he voiced out questioningly as he craned his neck a little to let their eyes meet.</p>
<p>Baekhyun turned and giggled at his son. "No Junnie he's not a doggy! He does have a deep voice like a doggy tho, huh..?" he said, smiling back at Chanyeol a little.  The tall boy blinked then grinned, now understanding the little one's question. The child grinned back so Chanyeol gave a little wave but then gestured to his watch and addressed Baekhyun. "It's getting late. You've gotta be hungry. Did you guys want me to go get some take out or something?" </p>
<p>The brunet shook his head. "No that would be too much trouble and we're probably going home soon anyway so we'll just pick up something on the way. You don't have to stay. I'm sorry if you've felt like you had to. I've been such a bother to you.."</p>
<p>Chanyeol was already shaking his head in denial. "You're not a bother. Please don't think that. Really.."</p>
<p>Right at that moment a nurse came bustling into the room. "Let's get this sweet little boy taken care of so he can go sleep in his <strong>own</strong> bed tonight, hmm?" she said perkily. The little boy on the bed looked up at her with big eyes, curious but not scared as she reached for her stethoscope.</p>
<p>Junmyeon took that moment to come over to Chanyeol. "Junnie's going to be ok. Thank you again for your care for Baek. I know he really appreciates it, especially coming from you."  Chanyeol was a little puzzled by the man's words, but he didn't get a chance to ask as Junmyeon continued. "I have my car here and I'll get them home safely. I know you're probably late for your dinner at home or something, so don't let us keep you from your obligations. You've helped so much already." </p>
<p>The taller took the hint. "I guess I'll get going then. Please tell Baekhyun I'll see him in school..?" </p>
<p>Junmyeon gave a little wave and Chanyeol slipped quietly out of the room. He walked slowly down the hall towards the exit. Just before coming around the corner to the nurses desk he heard two nurses talking.</p>
<p>"I'm so glad number 4 is going to be ok."</p>
<p>"Me too! I was working maternity last year when his Papa came in for delivery. That boy was a mess but he took the pain like a trooper!"</p>
<p>The nurses stopped their conversation and looked up from the desk, smiling politely and bowing as Chanyeol walked by and then out the exit doors. He stumbled a little as he made his way out to his car.</p>
<p>He was wrong. </p>
<p>Baekhyun wasn't a father.</p>
<p>He was a mother.</p>
<p>He had carried the little boy himself.</p>
<p>And this meant.. he wasn't straight.</p>
<p>This thought made Chanyeol smile, but then his thoughts began tumbling one right after the other. Who was Junseo's other father? And were they not together? Why did Baekhyun not even try to call him? Why wasn't he at the hospital? Why did Baekhyun trust Chanyeol so much and so quickly? And why did Junmyeon not seem surprised? </p>
<p>Suddenly the whole situation was even more of a reality check. Chanyeol realized he knew very little about this boy.</p>
<p>The new boy that had come into his life so suddenly and made his heart sit up and take notice for the first time in 2 years. The new boy, that had secrets that were amazing to find out but also made him an even more amazing person. Raising a child that young while still being so young himself. And facing each day with a smile. </p>
<p>All of these things had Chanyeol convinced. This boy had his attention.</p>
<p>He wanted to know more about him.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. WEDNESDAY</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>*WEDNESDAY*</p>
<p>The next day started much like the previous for the tall senior. Arriving just as the first bell rang. The first period study hall in the library, and picking up where he left off in the book from the day before.</p>
<p>But Chanyeol's mind had been whirling a long time last night. Even after finally falling asleep his thoughts were in turmoil, keeping him from getting real rest.</p>
<p>
  <em>Beautiful expressive blue eyes, looking up at him carefully with just enough appreciation and trust... </em>
</p>
<p>Today it was harder for the tall senior to concentrate on the book he was reading. After 10 minutes of trying to read the same three lines he gave up and put the book down. As soon as he crossed his arms and leaned his head into his chest, his eyes closed on their own.</p>
<p>It felt like only 5 minutes when he woke from the bell ringing to indicate the end of the first period. Chanyeol groaned as he took his long legs off the table and collected his backpack and coffee cup. He successfully side-stepped two underclassmen that were racing down the hall as he made the trek to his AP Calculus class. Taking his usual seat, the lanky-legged boy watched the other students entering the room.</p>
<p>Baekhyun and his dark-headed friend came in together, laughing at something. They both looked up at Chanyeol at the same time and their laughter stopped, but the smiles didn't. Chanyeol was a little thrown by this, but he tried to act normal and just dipped his head slightly in greeting. Both boys dipped their heads back in short bows as they came to their seats and sat down. </p>
<p>Chanyeol leaned over and got the brunet's attention. "Hey. Everything.. ok?" he asked carefully.</p>
<p>Baekhyun gave a small yet genuine smile. "Yes. Everything is good now. Thank you." he said quietly. The dark-headed boy leaned forward and smiled at Chanyeol as well, then turned towards the front as the teacher came into the room.</p>
<p>The whole exchange had the taller thinking deeply as he drank some more of his coffee. The brunet hadn't tried to be secretive in front of his friend. So his friend obviously knew at least some of what was going on with Baekhyun's private life. But the dark-headed boy hadn't acted cold like he did in the past or even shy like he had the last two days. So something was different.</p>
<p>Chanyeol must have looked like he was deep in thought, because the teacher suddenly got his attention and asked him if he was having trouble with the subject matter. The tall student denied any problems and gave his most convincing smile to the teacher. A student towards the front of the class raised their hand and said they were having trouble, and this took the attention off of him. As he sunk down into his seat in relief, Chanyeol looked over at the brunet and his friend, and saw the two were both looking at him in poorly hidden amusement. He winked and grinned at them. The friend giggled slightly as he turned away, but Baekhyun grinned back and shook his head before also turning back towards the front of the room. </p>
<p>When the class ended Chanyeol collected his backpack and now cooled coffee. He dumped the cup into the trashcan next to the door and then held the door open for a few students leaving the room. The fact that some of those students happened to include Baekhyun and his friend, the tall boy would swear was only coincidence. They all smiled at each other as they went separate ways down the hallway.</p>
<p>After yet another boring class, Chanyeol made his way to the cafeteria, buying his usual lunch and heading out to meet Jongin at the tree in the commons area. This time he made a point of watching for the brunet and his friend to walk by and look out the window. When they did, the lanky student gestured to them to come outside. </p>
<p>Jongin panicked. "Dude what are you doing?!"</p>
<p>Chanyeol elbowed him in the side. "I'm trying to help you with your love life, so smile and thank me later!" He gestured again, motioning for the two boys to come join him and his panicking friend. </p>
<p>Baekhyun was obviously laughing as he nodded, then turned to the boy with the thick-rimmed glasses and began an animated conversation with him, obviously trying to convince him to go outside. </p>
<p>Jongin elbowed Chanyeol in his side. "Admit it. You're trying to help your own love life while you're helping mine, aren't you?" He grinned slyly at his tall friend. "You know you are.. You are~!"</p>
<p>Chanyeol gave a goodnatured huff. "OK listen. Maybe I am a little interested in finding out more about this new boy. But the main thing here is to get you to go ahead and make your move on- <strong>OH HEY</strong>!" he called out suddenly as he saw the two boys with drinks and sandwiches in their hands, walking towards the large tree.</p>
<p>Jongin stood up as if he had been shot out of a rocket and began gesturing at the base of the tree. "You- you can sit over here if you want. It's the comfiest area to crash, trust me!" he said eagerly.</p>
<p>Baekhyun grinned mischeviously. "Kyungie you sit there." he indicated to the spot Jongin had just jumped up from.</p>
<p>The dark-haired boy blushed but then looked back at his friend with a twinkle in his eye. "Fine. Then you sit over there." he indicated with his hand towards the other side of Chanyeol.</p>
<p>Baekhyun looked betrayed for a second, but then Chanyeol lifted himself off the ground briefly to spin 180 degrees and plop back down on the ground, now facing the tree. "Just sit beside each other, it's fine." the tall boy said.</p>
<p>Jongin quickly realized what was going on and sat down beside him on the ground facing the tree as well. The two shorter friends looked at each other and shrugged, then sat on the ground with their backs to the tree in the position that Chanyeol and Jongin had previously occupied. </p>
<p>"So, he called you Kyungie..?" the taller spoke questioningly to the dark-haired boy.</p>
<p>The boy looked up and smiled as he adjusted his glasses with a short laugh. "It's short for Kyungsoo. He's the only one that's ever called me that."</p>
<p>"Oh, so you've known each other for a long time then..?" Chanyeol addressed his question to both the friends, who looked at each other then back to him with a smile as they nodded. </p>
<p>"I never saw Soo with a lot of friends before, so it's nice that he has you." Jongin said.</p>
<p>Baekhyun looked over at his now blushing friend. "Soo?" he said teasingly.</p>
<p>The boy ignored his friend's comment and looked at Jongin. "You.. watched me?" he asked unsurely.</p>
<p>Jongin immediately put his hands out in protest. "No- I- Not like stalking or anything.. just. I've seen you around..and.. yeah." By this time both Kyungsoo and Jongin had matching flushed cheeks. Baekhyun looked at how his friend was reacting, and he smiled broadly.</p>
<p>Right at that moment the breeze moved the tree limbs above them, making the sunlight shine through the leaves more and catching beautifully on the brunet's hair, making it look lighter than usual.</p>
<p><em>Beautiful hair. Silky golden strands.</em> </p>
<p>Chanyeol stared, captivated. As Baekhyun lifted his sandwich to his mouth, he noticed the tall boy staring. The brunet faltered briefly, his eyes shifting back down, but he had a smile on his face that was noticeable even tho he tried to hide it as he took a bite. Chanyeol grinned and took a bite of his own sandwich, chewing enthusiastically. The other blushing pair began eating their lunches as well.</p>
<p>Within a few minutes the four males were all sharing smiles as they enjoyed lighthearted conversation. Many outside the conversation stared at the interesting scene, since the taller two usually didn't have a lot of personal interaction with others. This was gossip-worthy entertainment for the elite prep school lunch hour.</p>
<p>Inside the cafeteria the group of preppy designer-clad girls all watched thru the window and gossiped about the four under the tree. One of the girls in particular seethed in furious jealousy as her friends all tried to calm her. At one point all four boys burst into laughter. The fuming girl at the table stood suddenly with a half scream and a new glint of resolve in her eye before storming out of the cafeteria. The boys outside carried on, oblivious.</p>
<p>As lunch ended Chanyeol and Jongin walked Baekhyun and Kyungsoo to their shared locker. Chanyeol made sure to tell the two shorter boys he would see them in Music Appreciation. He pretended not to notice the eager eyes of the brunet as they bid him a temporary goodbye. They parted ways, headed to their four separate afternoon classes.</p>
<p>In the next class, tuning out the lecture of the teacher was easy for Chanyeol as his mind wandered to the last hour's activities. Spending time with the new boy and his dark-haired friend had been fun. He had learned that the two actually knew each other for several years before Baekhyun came to their school, so that explained why they were already so close after the brunet only attended the prep school such a short time.</p>
<p>The view of the light shining thru Baekhyun's wind-ruffled locks kept flashing in the tall boy's mind, and he found himself trying to keep from smiling. The boy had more of his attention than ever before, and they had only known each other less than a week.</p>
<p>
  <em>It's so easy to be comfortable with him. And when he throws his head back to laugh, his neck shows where kiss marks would fit beautifully. </em>
</p>
<p>Chanyeol shook his head. He didn't know where these thoughts were coming from. That feeling of déjà vu was back and it was getting stronger.</p>
<p>As the tall student shook his head again, the teacher stopped the lecture to ask if the lanky boy was feeling well. Quickly checking the time showed there was less than 10 minutes left in the class, so Chanyeol asked to be excused, saying he would take himself to the infirmary to get medication for a headache. The teacher allowed it, and the tall senior collected his backback and walked out of the room. </p>
<p>As the door closed behind him, Chanyeol noticed movement down at the other end of the long hallway. Dealing with hall monitors could be a pain, so the lanky boy decided to avoid being seen. He stepped to the edge of the wall, half hiding in the shadowed area of the stairwell. Instead of a hall monitor, a familiar designer-clad female passed by with a wicked smile on her face and a piece of paper gripped tightly in her hand. The girl turned the corner toward the Music room without realizing she had been seen. Chanyeol had a feeling he would learn about the information on the piece of paper soon. He began to slowly walk in the direction of the Music room.</p>
<p>The bell rang to indicate the end of the period just as he came to the corner before turning down the long hallway to the classroom for his last class of the day. Students poured out from the open classroom doors, and Chanyeol caught a glimpse of a familiar brunet and his dark-headed friend heading down the hall ahead of him. Halfway down the hallway, the flow of traffic slowed as the two boys got closer to the group of designer-clad girls. The tall senior slowed down as he noticed Baekhyun being suddenly stopped by the hand of the same girl Chanyeol had seen earlier.  </p>
<p>"Oh look~ It's the latest <span class="u"><strong>SOC</strong></span>." The girls standing around her all tittered with fake laughter. Baekhyun just blinked as he looked straight at her, waiting for an explanation. "Oh, you don't know?" she said with snarky attitude. "That stands for <strong>Slut On Campus</strong>."</p>
<p>The brunet quickly responded. "Oh that's so negative.. Don't call yourself that, sweetheart." There were collective gasps as Baekhyun just smiled sweetly, and turned on his heel. The students that had gathered parted easily to let him start to walk away. </p>
<p>Chanyeol smirked. Now this guy <strong><span class="u">definitely</span></strong> had his attention.</p>
<p>But evidently the girl wasn't done with her little show. "I guess it takes one to know one, ..doesn't it, <span class="u"><strong>DADDY</strong></span>.." </p>
<p>The brunet had caught up with Kyungsoo, but stopped still upon hearing the girl's sneering words. Baekhyun was a little pale as he turned around to look at the girl who now had the piece of paper from before, holding it up to read it. "Byun Baekhyun. Medical report from St. Mary's Hospital- <strong>aah</strong>!!"  Her demeaning tone and accusing words were cut off with a short shriek as Chanyeol swiftly walked up and snatched the paper out of her hands. There was a collective gasp from several of the students watching. The tall senior turned to the girl with a deadly look on his face and several of her friends gulped nervously. The surrounding crowd rustled with hushed murmurs.</p>
<p>The girl stomped her foot and opened her mouth to speak but Baekhyun beat her to it. "It also takes <strong>kindness</strong> to create <span class="u"><strong>true</strong></span> beauty." he said in a steady loud voice. But he wasn't looking at the girl as he said it.</p>
<p>The murmurs rose in volume as Chanyeol backed away a couple of steps from the girl then turned and walked thru the rest of clustered students to get to the brunet. By now the crowd understood the scene was dying down, and the regular noises of conversations and footsteps began echoing thru the hall again. The taller gave the piece of paper to the hazel-eyed boy then guided him and his friend towards the Music room, keeping a hand gently on each of their lower backs. </p>
<p>As soon as they all got into the room, Baekhyun put his hands down to lean on one of the desks near the wall. "I- ..I'm-" He seemed to struggle with finding the words and his shoulders were shaking a little.  </p>
<p>Kyungsoo rubbed his friend's back as Chanyeol leaned in and spoke quietly to him with consoling words. "It's OK. Shhh.. You did great. It's OK."</p>
<p>The three stood together as other students continued coming into the room for class.  The teacher had come in as well and was discretely standing to the side, watching the scene. Chanyeol leaned over again and quietly asked the brunet "Do you think you'll be alright for class?" </p>
<p>Baekhyun straightened back up and half-turned to the lanky boy.  "Yes. Yes I'll be fine." He looked up to meet his gaze. The brunet's hazel eyes seemed lighter from the unshed tears.</p>
<p><em>Piercing blue eyes are beautiful but I'm sure his natural color is even prettier. Just like him. </em> </p>
<p>Chanyeol was getting used to these moments of déjà vu but he needed to sort thru them.</p>
<p>He turned towards the teacher who took the opportunity to come over to the three huddled together. "Everything alright here?" the teacher asked calmly. </p>
<p>Baekhyun nodded at the tall senior, who then spoke for the group.  "We're all fine. Thank you." </p>
<p>Kyungsoo guided his friend towards the seat they had occupied before and Chanyeol took his seat along the wall diagonally in front of them.  He deliberately turned his body to better see them, and smiled at the brunet, who gave a grateful smile back.</p>
<p>The bell rang indicating the start of class and the teacher went over to close the door.  Just as it was almost shut, the haughty girl from before tried to enter the room, but she was stopped by the teacher. "You are late Miss Kim." he said sternly.</p>
<p>She batted her eyelashes innocently. "But I'm right here! I'm on time!" she said, trying to act cutely. </p>
<p>The teacher wasn't amused. "You are late and I require a tardy slip for this. Either go to the principal's office for one now or have detention later. Your choice." </p>
<p>The girl huffed. "But- Uuh!" She rolled her eyes. "FINE.. I will go get a tardy slip.." She stomped her foot again for good measure.</p>
<p>"Miss Kim if you show disrespect towards me again I will require that tardy slip <span class="u"><strong>and</strong></span> have you serve detention." the teacher said firmly. "Am I making myself clear?"</p>
<p>"Very clear." the girl looked extremely dissapointed. She bowed slightly as she turned away. The teacher closed the door all the way and turned his head slightly to catch Chanyeol's eye. The senior nodded subtly at the teacher who gave a discrete smile. The interaction was lost to most of the others in the room, but Baekhyun had caught it. As the teacher turned towards the rest of the students to begin the days lesson, the brunet stared at the tall senior until he looked back at him.  When their eyes met, Baekhyun unexpectedly looked flushed and a little shy. </p>
<p>
  <em>So cute. Even when he's so bold he still needs reassuring. </em>
</p>
<p>Chanyeol was convinced. The new guy was such a mysterious contradiction. Cute but also handsome, quiet but sometimes loud, confident but still unsure, polite but quick with a comeback, small but so tall. And then there were those increased feelings of déjà vu.. All these things were making Chanyeol's head spin.</p>
<p>But he knew one thing for sure. He wanted him.</p>
<p>For the first time in 2 years, he wanted someone. </p>
<p>And it was Byun Baekhyun. </p>
<p>So Chanyeol knew he had some serious thinking to do. Because this time he would have to actually <span class="u"><strong>ask</strong></span> for what he wanted.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Park Chanyeol was used to things being given to him, often before he even thought to ask for them. He wasn't greedy and didn't make a big deal about what he had in mind, but at the end of the day he seemed to always get what he wanted.</p>
<p>All his life had been that way.</p>
<p>On the playground in elementary school he agreed with his friends that they wanted to get "big boy bikes" for their 10th birthdays. However, Chanyeol was given the latest model bicycle for Christmas when he was 8 years old, a full 2 years before his classmates got their "big boy bikes". He rode it proudly as he worked his neighborhood paper route on Saturday mornings three summers in a row.</p>
<p>Chanyeol had to wear a school uniform through elementary school. As soon as he started middle school where he could wear regular everyday clothing, his mother made sure to buy him all the jeans, t-shirts, and hoodies he seemed interested in. By the time he reached high school, the clothing he liked just began magically appearing in his dresser drawers and closet. Chanyeol spoke to his mother about a hoodie he was wearing one day and she just smiled sweetly and thanked him for being a good boy.</p>
<p>At 15 years old he had told his father he liked a dark blue BMW he saw on television. After having a clean driving record with the family car for a full year, at his 17th birthday his father gave him a brand new dark blue BMW of his own. </p>
<p>The first time he went to a high school house party he didn't have to ask for anything either. Someone just handed him a beer as soon as he got in the door and then shoved 3 pretty girls towards him. Chanyeol quickly downed the first cup of alcohol, then without him asking, one of the girls drug him into the bathroom and gave him his first blowjob. It wasn't all that bad and he left the bathroom dazed but a little more convinced of his actual sexuality. Instead of heading back to the other girls, he went over and hung around the beer pong game tables. It was soon discovered the drunker he got, the better he was at the game. He lost track of how many times he won, and the small crowd around him cheered every time. But none of that mattered when a beautiful blonde boy with blue eyes came over and laid a wet kiss on his unsuspecting lips. He hadn't asked for that either, and there was a little more teeth involved than he might have liked for his first kiss, but he found he didn't mind after they breathlessly pulled away from each other and he raked his alcohol-laden eyes over the tight jeans hugging the blonde's dangerous curves. The next thing Chanyeol knew he was again being pulled towards the hallway, this time into a bedroom just down from the bathroom. The rest of the night  was a blur and he remembered talking a little but he never had to ask for anything and was 100% sure he had a wonderful time with the blonde up until he passed out.</p>
<p>Even the next day when he woke up at Jongin's house, medicine for a headache was waiting for him on the bedside table without him having to ask for it. As he dealt with his hangover he moped about the beautiful blonde boy running off before he could get a name, but after a half-crying conversation with Jongin, his tanned friend had called for delivery coffee and a cutely wrapped box from a new cafe in town. His lunch ended up being 3 of the best blueberry muffins he had ever tasted and the coffee was top notch as well. Although his mind wandered to the pretty blonde from time to time, Jongin proved his friendship by distracting him and willingly playing Chanyeol's favorite video game with him for the next 3 hours. When he called to tell his mother where he was, she told him he could stay the night if Jongin's parents were OK with it, then paid for pizza to be delivered to Jongin's house as well. </p>
<p>Things like this just happened to Park Chanyeol and he appreciated it all. But now Chanyeol made a decision.</p>
<p>He didn't want Baekhyun to be given to him.</p>
<p>He wanted to earn him. To deserve him. To be the best thing that had ever happened to the pretty brunet.</p>
<p>Yes, Baekhyun was pretty. But he was a strong, amazing person that deserved to have someone that would love him and treat him as the most wonderful thing in the world.</p>
<p>And Chanyeol wanted to be that someone.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. THURSDAY</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>*THURSDAY*</p>
<p>The next day started out differently. 5 minutes before the first bell rang, the lanky senior was already standing in the hallway next to the locker that Kyungsoo shared with Baekhyun. Chanyeol ignored the stares of other students as he waited with three coffee cups in a to-go container.</p>
<p>The tall boy smiled in greeting as the two friends came walking up. "I brought caffeine for us this morning. There's one black coffee, one americano, and one latte." he said, indicating the top of the cups, which were marked with a small 'B', 'A', and 'L'. </p>
<p>Originally, Chanyeol planned to just bring coffee for the brunet, but figured it would be cruel to not bring one for his owl-eyed friend as well. Jongin had given his full approval of the plan and had gone in half with him to pay for the drinks.</p>
<p>Baekhyun blushed a little and smiled. "That's sweet. Which one is yours?"</p>
<p>"Whichever one is left after you guys choose is fine with me." the tall senior replied.</p>
<p>The hazel-eyed boy raised an eyebrow as he adjusted his glasses a little.  "No really. You paid so you should choose. Which one do you usually drink?"</p>
<p>Chanyeol could push it, but the first bell rang at that point and he decided to not take more time. "I usually have an americano." he said with a small smile.</p>
<p>Kyungsoo spoke up. "Perfect. I like mine black and Baek can have the latte. Problem solved!" he said, grabbing the one marked with the 'B'. </p>
<p>The brunet smiled up at Chanyeol. "Thank you so much!" he said sweetly as he took the cup marked 'L'.</p>
<p>The tall senior smiled back then winked as he nodded his head towards the owl-eyed boy. Baekhyun realized the taller had something planned and he hid a smile as he lifted his cup to drink. Chanyeol leaned over towards Kyungsoo. "Jongin said to tell you he's sorry he couldn't bring this to you himself." The dark-headed boy coughed into his drink as the taller continued. "He had early morning practice, so he's probably all worn out and sweaty by now..."</p>
<p>The eyes of the owl-eyed boy were opened wider than Chanyeol had ever seen and Baekhyun was doing a horrible job of covering up his laughter. Kyungsoo had frozen with his drink up by his mouth. His friend finally took pity on him and grabbed his arm.  "Come on, you can daydream about sweaty athletes in class. Let's go!" the brunet said, laughing as he pulled his friend's arm. "Bye Chanyeol! Thanks again for this!" Baekhyun lifted his coffee cup in salute then began dragging his still spluttering friend down the hallway.  </p>
<p>The lanky-legged boy chuckled as he watched them walk away.  Then he pulled the last coffee cup out of the drink carrier and turned towards the library just as the second bell rang. Perfect timing. As always. Life was good.</p>
<p>Chanyeol couldn't help feeling a little distracted as he read his novel during study hall. Thoughts of the brunet's smiles lingered in his mind. By the time the bell rang, he was already heading back out into the hallway toward his next class.</p>
<p>The second period AP class was a little shaken when the teacher decided to give a pop quiz, but the three boys in the last row didn't have many difficulties. Chanyeol knew the material well, and he found out the other two studied together often, so they were also comfortable with the questions. They told him this as they left the room after the bell rang.  Chanyeol held the door open for Baekhyun and Kyungsoo, then also held the trash lid open as they each dumped their empty coffee cups in the hallway trashcan. He excused himself to the bathroom after that, saying he needed to wash his hands before going to his next class. The truth was he needed to do that but also wanted to splash water in his face and pull himself together. Chanyeol had been dealing with the beautiful beaming smiles from the brunet all morning. A guy could only take so much. </p>
<p>When lunchtime came, the tall senior pushed his basketball-player friend over carefully to the side of where he usually sat under the tree. Chanyeol then steadily watched the window until two familiar faces came into view. Jongin caught on to what was happening and they both gestured in invitation when they saw the boys grinning at them thru the window.</p>
<p>Soon the school gossips had more to talk about as the four boys talked and laughed together under the large tree. This time Jongin was beside Kyungsoo, while Baekhyun sat diagonally next to Chanyeol with their knees touching.</p>
<p>Chanyeol was very aware that friendship was important for a successful romantic relationship, and he genuinely wanted both of those things with the hazel-eyed boy. The whole time the tall senior sat there, he was careful to make sure Baekhyun felt comfortable. He only asked casual questions that weren't prying about the brunet and his friend. He let Jongin make a fool of himself as the poor boy swooned over his crush. And the taller made sure to include the new boy in his good natured teasing of the obviously smitten couple sitting with them. </p>
<p>When the bell rang to indicate the end of the lunch period Chanyeol made a show of not wanting to leave the area around the tree. "Classes aren't as fun as this~... Nooooo!"</p>
<p>Jongin and Kyungsoo laughed at his antics, but Baekhyun took it a step further. He also laughed then grabbed Chanyeol's wrist and pulled him towards the school. "Let's go big boy!" he said, grinning back at the tall senior.</p>
<p>The brunet's eyes seemed to shine as the sunlight glinted off the thin metal rims of his glasses. Once again Chanyeol was mesmerized. </p>
<p><em>"Let's go Big boy... You've been tempting me long enough!" </em> </p>
<p>Caught in another déjà vu moment, the lanky-legged boy shook his head a second, stumbling a little over his feet.</p>
<p>Jongin furrowed his eyebrows, watching his friend. "You OK there Yeol?" he asked.</p>
<p>Kyungsoo cocked his head at the basketball player, looking a little dissapointed. "Yeol? You have nicknames for <strong><span class="u">everyone</span></strong> then?" </p>
<p>At Jongin's words Baekhyun had turned around to look, but Chanyeol was quick to give him a reassuring smile. "I'm fine" he said. </p>
<p>Jongin was already anxiously reassuring Kyungsoo of his loyalty to his select few friendships via nicknames, but Baekhyun ingnored him, addressing Chanyeol instead. "Yes you-  I mean, good!" </p>
<p>Chanyeol cocked his head. </p>
<p>
  <em>Stumbling a little as they entered the room he reassured the blonde. "I'm Fine!"  The blonde turned and ran his hands up and down his arms as he plastered his body against the taller. "Yes you <strong>ARE</strong>. <strong>VERY</strong> <strong>Fine</strong>..!"  The blonde brought his arms up to circle Chanyeol's neck. "Very, very fine indeed.." he said and pulled the taller down to crash their lips together again.</em>
</p>
<p>Baekhyun cocked his head in the same direction in response to Chanyeol's somewhat spaced-out look.</p>
<p>Jongin and Kyungsoo had gotten through their awkward moment to find their friends engaging in their own awkward moment and it made both of them giggle. Jongin snapped his fingers in the air between the brunet and the tallest one of their little group. "C'mon guys! Time for class~!" the tanned boy sing-songed. As if on cue the bell rang and they all looked at each other in panic.</p>
<p>"<strong>Shit!</strong>" Chanyeol voiced out what the rest of them were thinking and they all burst out laughing. They waved goodbye as they split up, running in different directions to hurry to class.</p>
<p>Fortunately the teacher hadn't closed the door to the World History class yet, so Chanyeol and Jongin came in the room bowing and apologizing for their tardiness. The teacher just smiled and waved her hand dismissively. </p>
<p>As the two settled into their seats, the teacher began lecturing. Jongin carefully hid his phone behind his tablet as he texted Chanyeol to ask about him the stumbling-then-spacing-out incident earlier. The tall senior texted back that he would explain later when they could talk. Satisfied, Jongin put his phone away and laid his head down for a nap. Chanyeol scoffed at his friend, but he didn't deny it looked very tempting since the lecture seemed extra boring. </p>
<p>At the end of the period Jongin and Chanyeol were among the last to leave the classroom. They were surprised to see Baekhyun and Kyungsoo waiting for them near the bend in the hallway. The four made their way to the Music room, weaving around the usual rush of students. When they reached the doorway, Jongin spoke up. </p>
<p>"So.. our team has a scrimmage game on Saturday afternoon and Coach said we could have friends come to make it more like a real game. It's gonna be here in the gym at 3pm. Can you guys all come?" he asked.</p>
<p>Saturday was only 2 days away. Chanyeol knew he could go, but he didn't know if Baekhyun had a babysitter for such short notice. Jongin didn't yet know about the brunet being a parent, but the tall senior knew it wasn't his secret to tell. He decided to be careful in his response. "I might, but I have to check. My neighbor asked if I would be interested in watching their kid this weekend and I have to make sure it's not during that time. I know it's sometimes hard to get babysitters." Chanyeol looked at Baekhyun and Kyungsoo as he said this, and both of their eyes open wider in understanding.</p>
<p>"Oh, I bet it can be. But hopefully they have several people in their life that can help them. That way you could come to the game with the rest of us, right Kyungsoo?" Baekhyun's words held the hidden explanation that Chanyeol was looking for, and he nodded as he smiled. It had been hard to tell the white lie with sincerity. </p>
<p>The basketball player raised an eyebrow at Chanyeol's excuse. He knew his friend didn't have any neighbor's with young children. The athlete started to say something but his tall friend cut him off. "I'm sure I'll be able to be there. Plan on it!" Chanyeol said, smiling at all three boys.</p>
<p>Jongin decided to not question it. He was sure his friend had a really good reason to suddenly tell a lie. He would just add it to the list of things to ask about later. "Great! Ok I gotta get to practice.. Bye~!" he said, waving as he backed away then turned and ran down the hallway in the direction of the gym. Baekhyun and Chanyeol exchanged a grin as they watched Kyungsoo wave back cutely.</p>
<p>The three went into the classroom and sat in their usual seats right as the bell rang to start the class. The teacher walked over and closed the door, then turned to the students. "Ok, can I have everyone's attention? Thank you." All eyes turned to the front of the room as the teacher continued. "Now.. As you may already know, the school Christmas Assembly usually has a talent show. That's about 3 months away, but the reason I'm bringing it up now is because I've decided to make that your final assignment for this semester." There was an outburst of confusion and questions from the students, but after a couple minutes the teacher raised his hand for silence and then continued. "Please pay close attention. I want you to split yourselves up into groups numbering anywhere from 3 to 6 members each. Choose your partners wisely. Your group will be writing and composing a song in any style or genre, and also making arrangements for your song to be performed at the Christmas Assembly. Whether it is performed by members of your group or not is up to you, but it MUST be performed in order for you to receive a grade." By now, the murmurs and stifled exclamations from the students had gotten very loud, and the teacher had to raise his voice to be heard over the ruckus. </p>
<p>One student in the back raised their hand to speak. "Do we HAVE to do this assignment?" they grumbled loudly.</p>
<p>The teacher raised an eyebrow and smirked. "I strongly suggest you do, since this whole exercise will count towards 80% of your grade for this semester."  His declaration caused amazement, excitement, and apprehension among all the students in the room. "I will let you choose your partners now." The teacher grinned at his riled up class. "Once you decide on your group members, come up and write your names on this clipboard." he said loudly over the noise of conversations as he set a clipboard on his desk.. </p>
<p>Chanyeol whipped his head around and looked directly at Baekhyun and Kyungsoo. The two friends were leaning in towards each other in conversation, but both of their heads were already turned facing the lanky-legged student. As soon as he looked at them, they both broke out into grins and Chanyeol grinned back. He opened his mouth to say something but was startled by a slender hand on his shoulder. The designer shoes beside his feet were a dead giveaway showing who was standing next to his seat. </p>
<p>"Wanna join my group Chanyeollie?" the sickly sweet voice was obviously meant for only him, but the brunet heard anyway and stilled for a moment.</p>
<p>Chanyeol looked up at the girl, who was batting her eyelashes at him. "Thanks but I've already decided who I'm partnering with, Taeyeon."</p>
<p>The girl huffed but tried to play it off as cute as she inspected her expertly manicured fingernails, then shrugged and flounced back to her chair, completely ignoring the stares of the two friends. In the past Chanyeol might have wanted to work on this sort of project with the haughty girl. She acted over-entitled, but she had really great vocal skills and he could easily have written something that would show them off beautifully and gotten them both a good grade.</p>
<p>But now, as he looked over at the hazel-eyed boy and his friend, Chanyeol felt excited. Writing for male voices might be a challenge but they were both good singers and he was confident they could make whatever he wrote shine just as well, if not better.</p>
<p>The student sitting in front of Baekhyun went over to talk to a friend, so Chanyeol slipped into the empty seat, straddling it backwards to face both boys. "Are you guys ok with this? Just us three?" he asked. His serious words were met with eager smiles and nods. The taller sighed in relief. "OK good. I hate to assume <strong>anything</strong>, but I just knew we could do a great job together." </p>
<p>"This will be fun!" Kyungsoo said, and Baekhyun nodded again then jumped up and ran over to the teacher's desk to write their names down on the list. The owl-eyed boy leaned towards Chanyeol who had turned his neck to watch the brunet. "You know... you're good for him." Kyungsoo said quietly.</p>
<p>Chanyeol turned back around to face the dark-headed boy. "He's good for me too, but I don't deserve him yet." he said. Kyungsoo's eyebrows raised in surprise but before he could respond Baekhyun came bounding back over to his seat. "Ok so how to we want to do this?" he asked eagerly.</p>
<p>The taller chuckled at the hazel-eyed boy. "Cute." he said, making the shorter blush. Chanyeol grinned and continued. "I thought maybe you both could come to my house and we could work on the project about once a week? I have a keyboard and guitar, and there's plenty of space for us to make all the noise we want without bothering anyone." </p>
<p>The two friends nodded at the tall senior's words. Kyungsoo spoke up. "Is it ok if we sometimes bring a <strong><span class="u">younger</span> </strong>member with our group?" he asked cryptically as he indicated with his head towards Baekhyun. The brunet turned his head swiftly to look at him in shock.</p>
<p>Chanyeol got the message just as fast and he was quick to agree. "Sure!" Baekhyun whipped his head back again to look at the tall boy as he continued. "If you want to bring anybody along, it'll be fine. We have a music room that has comfy carpeting, very few sharp corners, and is soundproof, so <span class="u"><strong>everybody</strong></span> can be comfortable when they're in there." Chanyeol reassured them, looking directly at the brunet. </p>
<p>Baekhyun looked worried. "What would your parents say..?" he looked around warily at the other students sitting so close to them as he continued. "About.. having more kids in their house and.. <span class="u"><strong>stuff</strong></span>?" </p>
<p>The tall senior smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry. My parents love kids. It'll be fine."</p>
<p>The brunet shifted in his seat. "But.."</p>
<p>Chanyeol laid his hand palm down on the desk between them. "It's ok if you don't want to." he said carefully. "But if you're comfortable, they'll be comfortable."</p>
<p>Kyungsoo nudged his friend. "And it will be good for everyone to get to know each other..don't you think?" </p>
<p>Baekhyun unexpectedly blushed but seemed extremely frustrated as he looked at his owl-eyed friend. "We are <span class="u"><strong>not</strong></span> doing this here!" he said quietly yet firmly through his teeth. Kyungsoo pursed his lips but nodded in agreement. Chanyeol was confused at the sudden change in atmosphere and pulled his hand back off the desk, furrowing his eyebrows a little as he watched the exchange. The brunet noticed and turned back around to the taller, then gave a small sigh and smiled. "Ok." he squared his shoulders. "So when should we start?"</p>
<p>Chanyeol blinked in confusion then took a second to think. "For this week.. How about Saturday? We can meet at my place for lunch and work a couple hours before we go watch the baskeball scrimmage game."</p>
<p>"Not a bad idea." Kyungsoo said. </p>
<p>Baekhyun nodded. "Sounds good. But I'll wait a week or so before bringing um.. extra friends.."</p>
<p>The taller nodded. "That's probably wise. I want everyone to be familiar with the surroundings when we hang out." He smiled reassuringly. The brunet smiled back with appreciation and Kyungsoo beamed at the two of them.</p>
<p>"Ok~..!" the teacher spoke loudly over the various conversations in the room. "Has everyone settled on their partners for this project? If you have, I'm going to read out the list just so I can confirm that everyone is involved and I have all the groups listed." </p>
<p>Chanyeol grinned at his group partners then slipped back over to his own seat near the wall. The teacher looked at the clipboard and began reading. "The first grouping is Park Chanyeol, Doh Kyungsoo, and Byun Baekhyun. Just three members, Ok.. The second group has 5 people listed. Lee....." The teacher continued reading out the list of groupings but instead of paying attention, Chanyeol pulled out his notebook and began jotting down his thoughts. Within 10 minutes a whirlwind of ideas had already spilled out from his brain and was filling the page. As the teacher spent the rest of the class reviewing chord progressions, the hazel-eyed boy repeatedly looked over at the lanky senior. Every time, Chanyeol had a satisfied look on his face. </p>
<p>When the bell rang for the end of class the three boys made their way through the crowded hallways to Kyungsoo and Baekhyun's shared locker. The two boys watched as Chanyeol waved good bye and headed out an exit door. As they turned back around, a familiar slender hand with expertly manicured fingernails abruptly stopped Baekhyun from opening the locker door. He turned his head to stare at the girl. </p>
<p>"Just because you managed to get him to join your group to work on a project, doesn't mean you have a claim on him." she said haughtily. "<span class="u"><strong>Some</strong></span> people understand how these things work." </p>
<p>Kyungsoo grabbed the door handle and yanked it open, successfully moving the girl's hand away in the process. He glared at her and she glared back, but when he refused to look away she turned on her heel and left through the crowd of students.</p>
<p>Baekhyun chuckled. "She was wrong <span class="u"><strong>and</strong></span> right at the same time." </p>
<p>Kyungsoo grinned back.  "Let's go home. I'm sure your claim is missing you."</p>
<p>The friends placed their books into the locker and left the building. As they walked outside, the two noticed the parking lot had a small group of students gathered on the edge of the sidewalk. They were all watching Chanyeol as he held an envelope in his hand, walking towards a large trash can at the edge of the grass. A dissapointed sigh sounded from the group as they watched the tall senior throw the envelope away then walk back to his blue BMW and climb in. As he drove away one of the girls spoke to another in the group. "Our BMOC will never accept any of the love letters left for him. They say he just doesn't do dating." </p>
<p>Hearing the girl's words, Baekhyun's shoulders slumped a little. Kyungsoo put his hand on the brunet's arm, but before he could say anything, the other student responded to the girl. "Not true. I heard he hooked up with somebody really hot once 2 years ago."  The girl scoffed. "If that's true, whatever that person did screwed it up for the rest of us. Thanks whoever you are.."</p>
<p>Baekhyun stood frozen. Kyungsoo quickly grabbed his shoulders from behind and began pushing him away from the area. He didn't stop until they got to his car where he opened the door and pushed his friend into the seat. As he was closing the door back, the dark-headed boy just barely heard another girl saying "Yeah, he must still be hung up on that person to not want to date anyone else.."  Kyungsoo smiled to himself as he circled around to the other side of the car and got in. Deliberately turning on the radio and turning up the music, he drove them in the direction of home.</p>
<p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. FRIDAY</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>*FRIDAY*</p>
<p>The next morning Chanyeol once again stood by the lockers with 3 cups of coffee. The same 'B', 'A', and 'L' were marked on the top, along with a smiley face on the one marked 'B'. Baekhyun and Kyungsoo walked up to the locker with smiles on their faces and immediately reached out for the drink of their choice. The brunet noticed the smiley face. "Why does only Kyungie get a smiley face?" </p>
<p>The tall senior grinned. "Jongin called in our orders today, so I'm guessing he had something to do with it." Kyungsoo flushed and brought his cup up to his mouth to cover his smile.</p>
<p>Baekhyun grinned as well, then turned to Chanyeol. "Thanks again for this. I need it after how little sleep I got last night." He took a sip of his latte. "Ahhhh, yes."</p>
<p>The taller looked a little worried. "Did um.. did everyone have trouble sleeping at your house last night?" he asked carefully.</p>
<p>The brunet shook his head. "Oh no. Just me. I couldn't turn my brain off for some reason.." he sighed and took another sip of the hot liquid.</p>
<p>Chanyeol pulled his phone out. "Here, let's exchange numbers. Then when you can't sleep or something, you can text me and I can tell you useless things and bore you to sleep.." he grinned. </p>
<p>The hazel-eyed boy grinned back. "You don't strike me as the boring type tho.." he said as he typed in his number.</p>
<p>The taller nodded. "Oh but I can be. Just let me start explaining how to change the oil and brakes on my car, or the names of all the bus stops on the line that goes by my house. I'll have you yawning by the third sentence and snoring by the fifth!" </p>
<p>Baekhyun and Kyungsoo burst out into raucous laughter, startling a couple of students walking by. Chanyeol grinned widely, proud that he made them both laugh so hard. He stood watching the brunet's happy expression. </p>
<p>
  <em>That head thrown back in laughter makes him even more beautiful. I have to remember whatever I said so I can repeat it later and see that beautiful smile again. </em>
</p>
<p>This time Chanyeol wasn't sure if this was a déjà vu moment or a current thought. It might have been both, but it was true nonetheless. He happily took a drink of his americano as the first bell of the morning echoed in the hallways.</p>
<p>Baekhyun handed the phone back to the taller as Kyungsoo closed the locker door. The owl-eyed boy nudged the brunet's shoulder. "C'mon. We gotta get to class." The two friends waved and walked away. Chanyeol waved back then turned and headed towards the library. He bowed politely as he passed two teachers in the hallway, and chuckled at their looks of confusion from seeing him inside the building so early.</p>
<p>After reaching the library and taking his usual spot, he pulled his phone out and looked at the new number. It took him a minute to figure out that instead of a name, Baekhyun had used an emoji. A [🐝] (bee emoji) sat cutely in place of his name. Chanyeol smiled, but then decided to edit it by adding a growing heart emoji to one side of the little insect. [💗🐝] Considering the way he was feeling about the beautiful brunet, it seemed appropriate.</p>
<p>For the next half hour the tall senior tried to read his book, but his mind kept wandering to the hazel-eyed boy. There was something about those déjà vu moments that were specifically linked to Baekhyun. Chanyeol just quite couldn't figure out the reason. </p>
<p>He finally put his book down and took his phone, opening the contacts list again to look at the little emojis that sat in the place of the newest name on the list. He stared at the little bee with it's yellow and black stripes. Two distinctly different colors. The heart beside the insect distracting a little from the color scheme. Staring at the heart made the black parts on the bee look brown. The white wings with the darker outline showing the shape.</p>
<p>Chanyeol had a feeling he was missing something really important. He had just started going back over things in his mind when the bell rang to signal the end of the first period. He sighed. The heavy thinking would have to be used for class today. Taking his lanky legs back down off the table and slipping his phone into his pocket, he slung his backpack over one shoulder, picked up his coffee cup, and headed towards AP Calculus.</p>
<p>Walking into the classroom, Chanyeol saw the hazel-eyed boy and his friend already in their seats and having a hushed conversation as they looked at pictures on Baekhyun's phone. They both looked up when the lanky boy settled himself into his seat, but then Kyungsoo nudged his friend towards Chanyeol. Baekhyun flushed, then looked down at his phone and seemed to come to a decision. He typed something into his phone and then looked up at the tall senior expectantly. Within seconds, Chanyeol felt his phone vibrate with an incoming message. He grinned and looked down to open it. His grin became a soft smile soon as he saw the contents.</p>
<p>Instead of words, a picture was staring back up at him. A picture of Baekhyun, holding his son. The baby and parent had their faces turned towards each other, but a wide smile was easily visible on both of their faces. Judging by the shirt the brunet was wearing, the picture had apparently been taken the previous day.</p>
<p>Chanyeol looked back up, delight clearly showing on his face. Baekhyun smiled back, a little shy. Kyungsoo was smiling as well, but the tall senior didn't notice. All of his attention was centered on the beautiful boy that was looking at him so sweetly. Baekhyun had trusted him with a picture of his son. Chanyeol wasn't exactly sure why, but this made him very happy. </p>
<p>The teacher began the class but the lanky boy had a hard time concentrating. By the end of the period he couldn't say what material had been covered in the day's lesson, but he knew exactly how many times he had looked over at the hazel-eyed boy. It was enough to have that sweet smile turn into shy blushing. So much so the teacher became distracted but chose to not say anything. After all, smiling students were better than sleeping ones.</p>
<p>When the class let out, Chanyeol once again walked with the other two, holding the door open for them as they all left the room. Before they split ways again Kyungsoo spoke up. "We'll be getting lunch for you guys today since you bought coffee two days in a row for us. Just wait at the tree and we'll bring it." The tall senior was surprised but didn't get a chance to protest as the two boys waved goodby and walked off towards their next class. Chanyeol shook his head and chuckled, then pulled his phone out and texted Jongin quickly before heading to his last class of the morning.</p>
<p>When the bell rang to end the third period Chanyeol was surprised to see the basketball player waiting for him as he came out into the hallway. "What made them decide we needed to have lunch bought for us today?" the brown-haired boy asked. </p>
<p>The taller chuckled. "I guess they figured it was only fair, since we splurged for morning caffeine..?" </p>
<p>"Yeah but we can afford it.. I don't think any less of them for it, but it makes me feel bad they're spending money on us."</p>
<p>"Well you know they can probably afford it too -- after all they ARE attending the same expensive school as we are.." Chanyeol raised his eyebrows at his friend.</p>
<p>Jongin instantly protested. "I know! I know! I didn't mean it like that.."</p>
<p>By now the two had come to the large tree in the commons area. The taller turned to his friend. "Tell you what.. Let's ask them to dinner this weekend. You and I will pay for their meal. Like a double date.." </p>
<p>The basketball player nodded enthusiastically. "Yes! I love that idea! Just the four of us-"</p>
<p>"Four?" Baekhyun asked, walking up with his arms full of food. "Is Jongin joining our music project too?" </p>
<p>Jongin had gone over to help Kyungsoo with the drinks in his arms, but at the question he looked a little confused. "Music project? Oh, isn't that what you were texting me about last night Yeol?"</p>
<p>Chanyeol had noticed all the sandwiches were the same so he had already begun taking them out of Baekhyun's arms and dividing them up among the four of them. He responded to Jongin's question as they all settled on the ground in a circle under the tree.  "Yes I told Jongin about the music project, but no that's not what we were talking about when you guys got here just now." </p>
<p>The two shorter boys looked at the tallest expectantly. He smiled at them. "Jongin and I would like to take you two out to dinner. Maybe even this weekend, if you're up for it."</p>
<p>Kyungsoo looked surprised and his cheeks turned a pretty light pink. But Baekhyun looked dissapointed. "I have a regular obligation on Saturday evenings and I have a job where I work a 10-hour shift on Sundays and a 4-hour shift on Wednesday evenings." he said.</p>
<p>The two taller boys were obviously surprised. </p>
<p>"Wow! I didn't know you had a job. That's amazing that you do that while still in high school and studying and have a social life and everything!" Jongin said.</p>
<p>Chanyeol nodded in agreement. It had to be rough, especially adding to the situation of Baekhyun having a child to take care of as well. He had to be exhausted. Every day the tall senior learned more and more about the hazel-eyed boy and it only made his interest grow stronger and stronger. </p>
<p>Baekhyun swallowed a drink of his orange juice before he responded. "Actually, I haven't had much of a social life for the past couple of years.."</p>
<p>"You've had a job that long?" Jongin asked.</p>
<p>"Well, basically.. yeah." the brunet exchanged a glance with his owl-eyed friend.</p>
<p>Kyungsoo smoothly changed the subject. "So what about you..?" he addressed the basketball player. "Being at practice so much and then school and studying.. It must be hard having a busy social life too, huh?" </p>
<p>Chanyeol realized what the dark-headed boy was doing, and he spoke up to help. "Are you kidding? This boy is so popular but he doesn't accept any invitations to parties cause he says they're <span class="u"><strong>boring</strong></span>!" he clapped his friend on the shoulder, grinning widely. </p>
<p>Jongin rubbed at his offended shoulder. "Hey..! Nobody interesting ever goes to those parties, and ever since <span class="u"><strong>you</strong></span> stopped going two years ago I didn't have <span class="u"><strong>anyone</strong></span> to hang out with there!" he growled good-naturedly at his tall friend.</p>
<p>Baekhyun suddenly choked on a bite of his sandwich. Kyungsoo scrambled to whack him on the back a couple of times and Jongin leaned across the circle to look at him with concern.</p>
<p>Chanyeol watched the whole scene as his brain turned. There was no déjà vu moment this time, but he had the same feeling from before like there was something he was missing and he just didn't quite know what it was.  He watched as Baekhyun took a drink of orange juice, nervous eyes meeting his over the top of the bottle. Chanyeol lifted his own orange juice and took a drink. The brunet put his drink back down and smiled gratefully at his owl-eyed friend. "I'm alright.." he said. He looked up and smiled reassuringly at the other two boys in their little group. </p>
<p>"So.. are you looking forward to having a kinda real game tomorrow?" Baekhyun asked Jongin.</p>
<p>The basketball player grinned. "Oh YEAH! The season starts next week, but it feels like we've been practicing for 10 years! It's gonna be great having people there to cheer for us instead of just coach's whistle and half-assed clapping!" The boys all laughed and the rest of their lunch period was spent chatting about the upcoming game.</p>
<p>However, by the time Chanyeol made it to Music Appreciation, he had a headache. Throughout the previous class he had acted like he was taking notes and paying attention, but in truth he actually was going over the events of the past week. His mind was a jumbled mess of déjà vu moments, beautiful smiles, interesting coincidences, hidden truths, and known facts. All of it seemed to be slowly adding up, but he felt like there was one or two pieces of the puzzle missing to complete the picture. The mixed metaphors alone were driving him crazy. </p>
<p>As the tall senior walked into the classroom, he saw that Baekhyun and Kyungsoo were already in their seats.The hazel-eyed boy looked up at Chanyeol, and the light shone off the thin metal rim of his glasses. The taller squinted at this as he sat down, his head throbbing a little, and Baekhyun seemed to notice. The brunet leaned over towards him. "Hey.. You OK..?" he asked with concern. The angle he was leaning over made his glasses slip down his nose a little, and Chanyeol blinked at him for a second before responding.</p>
<p>"Yeah.. just a headache, that's all." he said, giving a small smile. "I'll be fine.." He tried to sound reassuring but Baekhyun didn't seem convinced. The boy got up and stood behind the taller, putting his fingertips on Chanyeol's temples and hairline with just a little pressure and moving them in small circles. The lanky senior melted under his touch. "Ohmygod that feels good..." Chanyeol purred. His eyes closed involuntarily as he enjoyed the massage.</p>
<p>The boy standing behind him chuckled. "I'm glad that feels good to you.."</p>
<p>Chanyeol's eyes flew open.</p>
<p> <em>I'm glad that feels good to you baby. I want you to feel good. </em></p>
<p>This wasn't adéjà vu moment, this was a memory.He might have been drunk, but he knew he had said those words two years ago. That night. With that boy.</p>
<p>Chanyeol drew in a shakey breath and turned around, moving away from the smaller's hands. "Thanks, I think that helped." he smiled in what he hoped was a convincing manner. Baekhyun seemed surprised but smiled back and went back over to his seat. Kyungsoo was watching the whole scene, and he deliberately caught Chanyeol's eye as the brunet was sitting back down. His subtle knowing smirk was a little unnerving for the tall senior, who turned facing forward as the bell rang to signal the start of class. </p>
<p>The teacher had decided to show the class a 45 minute documentary on the importance of music in the Renaissance period, pausing every once in a while to ask questions and emphasize specific points. The overhead lights were mercifully turned off for most of the period. Chanyeol took the opportunity to rest his eyes as much as possible although he didn't sleep. He successfully answered questions two different times and the teacher didn't seem to mind that he kept his head propped against the wall the whole time. By the end of the class the headache was mostly gone.</p>
<p>When the bell rang he turned around and deliberately waited for Baekhyun and Kyungsoo before walking out of the classroom. They made their way through the noisy hallway to the shorter boys' shared locker then Chanyeol pulled out his phone. "I'm going to send my address to Baekhyunee so you guys will know where to come tomorrow. Can you get there around noon?" he asked as he began to type. </p>
<p>The brunet nodded. "Sure!"</p>
<p>Kyungsoo smirked. "Noon sounds good for me. And I'll be sure to get the address from 'Baekhyunee'.." </p>
<p>The brunet colored prettily as he whacked his friend good naturedly on the shoulder. Chanyeol made a mental note to send a text apologizing for the nickname later.  At that moment the blushing boy's pocket blinged as his phone alerted to an incoming message. He checked the message as Kyungsoo looked over his shoulder. Both boys then looked up and smiled in confirmation.</p>
<p>The tall senior smiled back. "Great! So I'll see you tomorrow then.." He waved and then walked away toward the side exit door. </p>
<p>Baekhyun turned back towards the locker as Kyungsoo grinned at him. "Not gonna watch him and sigh as he walks away today?" the dark-headed boy teased his friend. The brunet whacked his friend's shoulder again. "No~!" he said sheepishly, his face turning pinker.</p>
<p>The two friends placed their books into the locker then left the building, bickering and laughing the whole way.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Later that evening after dinner Chanyeol helped his mother by drying and putting away the dishes she was washing. They had a housekeeper that came on weekdays to help keep the house clean and sometimes cook, but Mrs. Park preferred to do most of the daily chores herself when she could. Mr. Park worked full time, but even he was known to help fold laundry from time to time. They raised Chanyeol to understand how to do these things and to appreciate the opportunity to complete a job well-done. The tall senior was close with both his parents, and his mother always knew when he had something on his mind.</p>
<p>"It's hard to believe the first month of your senior year is already over..." Mrs. Park said as she rinsed a dish and handed it to her son.</p>
<p>The lanky boy smiled. "Yeah. I already have my first big assignment to work on too." </p>
<p>"Really? What subject is it in?" she asked.</p>
<p>"Music Appreciation." His mother made a noise of understanding as Chanyeol continued. "Actually, I have two friends coming over to work on it with me tomorrow."</p>
<p>"Oh that's nice..!" Mrs.Park commented, handing the tall boy a freshly rinsed glass. "Is Jongin one of those friends?"</p>
<p>Her son grinned. "No, but one of them is a boy that Jongin's been interested in for a long time. I recently got them to start talking and it's looking good for them.."</p>
<p>"Oh My! Our shy Nini might get a boyfriend.. I bet he's happy about that!" she laughed.</p>
<p>Chanyeol laughed along as he carefully dried another glass and put it in the cabinet. "Yep! He's been on cloud nine this whole past week.."</p>
<p>"So the other friend that's coming over.. do I know them?"</p>
<p>"No, but I want both of them to meet you. They will be here a lot working on the assignment with me over the next couple of months." </p>
<p>"Oh I see.." She thought out loud as she washed the last plate. "What time will they be here? Should I make some cookies for snacks or anything?"</p>
<p>"They're coming at noon. I figured we'd order pizza for lunch, but your cookies would be a nice snack to have as well. After lunch we're only gonna do a couple hours of work on the project. Nini has a scrimmage game at the school that starts at 3 o'clock and we're all planning to go." Chanyeol explained as he finished putting the plate in the cabinet.</p>
<p>"Oh! I'd better vaccuum the music room tonight then. I can whip up a batch of cookies tomorrow morning." his mother said as she rinse out the soap residue from the sink. </p>
<p>"I can vaccuum Mom, it's OK.. Um.. there's something else I wanted to tell you tho.."</p>
<p>Mrs. Park dried her hands on a kitchen towel and then turned, giving him her full attention. Chanyeol suddenly felt nervous for some reason. He cleared his throat and leaned against the kitchen counter, looking down at the floor. "This other friend.. is.. well.." </p>
<p>"..Special to you..?" his mother asked gently as she watched her son fidgit. </p>
<p>Chanyeol nodded. "But not only that. I wanted to.. let you know something he probably doesn't want you to know yet." </p>
<p>"Darling, if he doesn't want people to know, then-" </p>
<p>"No. He does want <span class="u"><strong>you</strong></span> to know.. he just doesn't know how you'll react. And this is important." The tall boy took a deep breath. His mother waited patiently for him to continue. "He's.. He's like Jongin's mother was.. when Nini was born.."</p>
<p>"Oh!" Mrs. Park gasped. "And so young..!"</p>
<p>Chanyeol nodded as he looked up through his lashes at his mother. "He's trying his best. I didn't know how to tell him that you would totally understand. I just tried to reassure him and told him it's ok to bring his baby here when he comes over if he wants. It's a safe place for both of them."</p>
<p>"Yes it is! But.. does the other person coming tomorrow know about this child?"</p>
<p>The tall boy smiled. "They've been good friends for a long time and I suspect Kyungsoo has been one of the few people that has known about Baekhyun's baby from the beginning."</p>
<p>"Baekhyun.. hmm.." his mother smiled then got a twinkle in her eye. "What color is his hair..?"</p>
<p>"MO~Mm!!" Chanyeol turned bright red. "You said you wouldn't talk about that!" he protested. He couldn't help smiling at his now laughing mother. It <strong>had</strong> been two years, so he couldn't blame her.</p>
<p>After a full week of restless nights and uneven dreaming following THAT party two years ago, Chanyeol had turned to his mother to help him figure out how to start getting sleep again. Even without getting too much information his smart mother had figured out that her little boy had fallen in love. The woman's patience had been rewarded when the boy finally explained why he had been losing sleep. The description he gave his mother of the beautiful person from the party was not very detailed, but the subject of blonde hair had been carefully avoided by both parents from that point forward. Chanyeol counted himself lucky to have such understanding parents.</p>
<p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. SATURDAY</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>*SATURDAY*</p>
<p>The next morning Chanyeol woke to the combined smell of chocolate chip cookies and blueberry pancakes. He bounded down the stairs and greeted his parents as he sat down at the table. His father sat with him, enjoying a cup of coffee while the tall boy enjoyed his breakfast. They agreed it was a struggle to leave the freshly baked chocolatey yuminess to cool on the counter. But both males knew better than to test Mrs. Park, so they left the cookies alone.  </p>
<p>As soon as he finished eating, Chanyeol went back upstairs to his room and got dressed in jeans and a plain light blue T-shirt. He chose the color for a reason, but he was nervous to see how the conversation would go if he brought it up. The thought had come to him when he was going to sleep the night before. He just had to choose his words carefully and hope for the best.</p>
<p>About 11:30 his phone blinged with an incoming message.<strong> 'On our way - Riding 2gether - C U @ 20 mins!' </strong></p>
<p>Chanyeol texted back with a thumbs up emoji then whirled around, looking at every area possible in his room. He had straightened and cleaned everything the night before. Just his bed was slightly rumpled now, and he made it up quickly. Then he raced back down the stairs and called out, announcing to his parents,"They're on their way!"</p>
<p>His mother called back, "OK!"</p>
<p>The tall boy went to the familly music room and looked around. The piano had been dusted, the books straightened, and a fresh notepad of lined music paper was sitting on the small desk. Obviously Mrs. Park had done more than just vaccuum the floor the night before while Chanyeol was upstairs cleaning his own room. As he sat down on a chair he made a mental note to thank her later. He picked up his guitar, tuning it as he waited. </p>
<p>Soon the doorbell rang, and Chanyeol put the guitar down as he called out, "I'll get it!"  He quickly checked his hair in the hallway mirror, then hurried to the front entrance. The tall boy took a deep breath, then opened the door. "Come in!" he said warmly.</p>
<p>Kyungsoo and Baekhyun smiled happily as they came in, stepping out of their shoes at the entrance. Chanyeol guided them into the family room area where his parents were sitting. "Mom, Dad.. These are my friends Kyungsoo and Baekhyun. Guys, these are my parents." he introduced them. Both boys bowed politely. </p>
<p>"Very nice to meet you boys!" Mrs. Park smiled. "Which one is which?" </p>
<p>Kyungsoo raised his hand a little. "I'm Kyungsoo.." he said, smiling.</p>
<p>"I see.. So that means you're Baekhyun.." she nodded at each boy as she spoke.</p>
<p>"Yes Ma'am.. Thank you so much for having us in your home." Baekhyun said politely.</p>
<p>"We're happy to have you!" said Mr. Park. "Our boy usually doesn't have any friends over except for Jongin."</p>
<p>"His mother worked nightshift when he was growing up, so Jongin stayed here a lot. Chanyeol has never asked other friends to come to our home until now." Mrs. Park added.</p>
<p>Both boys looked surprised, but didn't get a chance to comment as the lanky boy was already guiding them out of the room and down the hallway. He stopped at a thick wooden door with intricate carvings and pushed it open. As the two guests stepped into the room, they both made sounds of amazement.</p>
<p>Sitting the middle of the mid-sized room was a mahogany baby grand piano. A couch and two smaller chairs were arranged against two of the walls facing the piano. Over on the other side of the room was a small wooden desk and chair. Next to that was a stool and two guitars sitting on stands. A musical mural was painted on one of the walls, and the other walls were all lined with insulating decorative foamboard. In the corner were two microphones on stands and some equipment sitting on three shelves above each other. A monitor sat on the wall above that with a keyboard on a swing-out shelf. </p>
<p>"This is an amazing setup!" Baekhyun exclaimed. Chanyeol let the door swing almost shut as he grinned at their excitement. The hazel-eyed boy turned around to the taller, beaming. "We can get SO much done here!" </p>
<p>Kyungsoo echoed his excitement. "This is perfect! This is a soundproof room, isn't it?" he asked.</p>
<p>Chanyeol nodded. "Our housekeeper's brother is an artist and he painted the mural on wall board before we put it up, so even that wall is insulated.</p>
<p>Baekhyun unexpectedly flopped down cross-legged on the floor and looked around, turning almost in a circle.</p>
<p>The tall boy looked at him with amusment. "There are plenty of chairs..." he said.</p>
<p>Kyungsoo grinned and walked around the room a little as he explained. "He does this in places he might want to bring Junnie. This way he can see what the little one might see and possibly try to get into trouble with."</p>
<p>Chanyeol was surprised that the dark-headed boy said the child's name so freely, but then he remembed that everyone in the room knew about the baby. His parents did too, but neither of his guests knew that yet. But what the young parent was doing made a lot of sense and it made the tall boy happy that Baekhyun's first action after entering the room was to see how safe his son would be there. That meant he was seriously considering bringing the baby with him to the Park family home in the future. </p>
<p>Chanyeol leaned over the brunet's shoulder, deliberately getting close to the boy's hair as he spoke. "Like what you see?" he asked.  He remembered he said those same words for a totally different reason two years ago. This time he leaned back, noticing a light blush blooming on Baekhyun's cheeks. Chanyeol filed the view away in his mind, adding it to all his thoughts about the moments he had been remembering recently. By the time the brunet turned around to look at him, the tall boy had already walked over to the stool where he had sat before, and picked up his guitar. </p>
<p>"Um.." Kyungsoo spoke up. "I wanted to ask about something your mother said."</p>
<p>Chanyeol cocked his head and smiled, waiting. </p>
<p>The owl-eyed boy turned around to look at his host. "She said Jongin stayed with you a lot when his mother was at work. Why didn't he stay with his dad?"</p>
<p>The tall boy.gave a small nod of understanding."Well, his parents aren't together, and so he was raised by a single mother."</p>
<p>"Are they divorced?" Baekhyun asked.</p>
<p>"No. He actually grew up not knowing who his father was until she told him the truth when we were in middle school. Turns out she snuck into a bar when she was 16, had a one night stand with a guy and ended up pregnant. She never found out his name and she said right after he was done with her the dumbass said he had to get back home to his family, so she didn't want him in her life after that. When her parents found out she was pregnant they were really mad, and a month after she had the baby they kicked her out. She stayed with a neighbor for about a year but it was hell trying to work a job to get money to live and also pay a babysitter." Chanyeol said, lightly strumming the guitar as he explained.</p>
<p>Both of the boys looked at him in shock. Baekhyun finally spoke up. "Wow. It makes sense now why he doesn't want to just party or hook up."</p>
<p>The lanky boy nodded. "Believe me," he said, looking at Kyungsoo, "when he decides he's interested in someone, he's sincere about it. He won't play around with feelings." The owl-eyed boy blushed and nodded back, a small hint of a smile tugging at his face.</p>
<p>Chanyeol continued as he plucked the strings of the guitar. "My mom met his mom at the pediatric clinic when they brought us there for check-ups while we were both still babies. She saw how much Jongin's mom was struggling and offered to babysit for free, and we've been hanging out ever since. They actually lived with us for a little while." </p>
<p>Baekhyun cooed. "Awww.. Baby Chanyeol and Baby Jongin.. how cu~ute!"</p>
<p>The tall boy stopped playing the instrument as he blushed and grinned sheepishly. "Thanks.. I guess." The other two boys laughed at him.</p>
<p>Kyungsoo walked over and sat on the piano bench, but then whirled around to look at Chanyeol. "So is that why you said your parents would be ok with bringing Junnie here? Because of Jongin's mom?"</p>
<p>Chanyeol nodded then looked at the brunet, who was already staring at him. "Please don't be mad, but last night I actually told my Mom that you were kinda in the same situation." He raised his voice a little in panic as he saw the hazel-eyed boy looking shocked and starting to get mad. "I DIDN'T SAY YOU WERE KICKED OUT OR ANYTHING! I just told her you had a baby.. I knew she would understand what you're going thru.. and .. yeah." </p>
<p>The dark-headed boy quickly leaned over to his friend and put his hand on his shoulder as though to hold the brunet down.</p>
<p>Right at that moment, there was a knock at the door and Mrs. Park peeked her head into the room. "Hi boys! I'm going to order pizza, and I brought cookies for you to snack on til' it gets here." She smiled as she walked over and placed the cookies and napkins down on the desk, then turned around to face the group. "Now..what do you like on your pizza?" she asked.</p>
<p>Chanyeol didn't look away from the boy in the floor. He realized his mother had heard everything from the hallway before she had knocked. Baekhyun was obviously still trying to recover from the shock he had just gone thru. Kyungsoo gripped the brunet's shoulder a little tighter as he spoke to Chanyeol's mother. "We're fine with whatever you would normally order for Chanyeol." he said politely. </p>
<p>"Oh I don't know... he's got this thing for pineapple on his pizza that his father and I can't stand. I wouldn't blame you if you tell me you don't want that." she laughed.</p>
<p>"Actually..." Chanyeol and Kyungsoo were caught off guard as Baekhyun spoke up suddenly. "I like pineapple on my pizza as well." The brunet had a strange expression on his face as he looked over at the tall boy. "I've never met anybody else that does tho..."  His friend loosened his grip, changing to a caress of his shoulder.</p>
<p>Mrs. Park smiled softly. "Well then.. pineapple it is! Anything else? What about you, Kyungsoo?" Her smile became a grin. "I'll be ordering two, so at least one of them <strong>won't </strong>have pineapples on it." </p>
<p>The owl-eyed boy laughed, his eyes scrunching up behind his glasses. "That's good. I'm fine with just pepperoni and cheese, thank you!" he smiled.</p>
<p>Baekhyun got up off the floor and started towards the couch, but Mrs. Park reached over and caught his hands in hers, stopping his movement. He was startled as he looked up at the woman. "Please don't be mad at my son. He has nothing but good intentions and would never want anyone he cares about to be uncomfortable." she said quietly. Baekhyun looked down at their joined hands as he nodded slowly in understanding. His eyes were suspiciously glassy. Mrs. Park continued. "And you are welcome to bring your little one here at any time. Children are a gift and we treasure them in this household." Baekhyun made a quick noise like a strangled sob as a single tear fell. The woman patted the back of one of his hands with hers as she turned to look at Chanyeol. "I'll go order the pizza now. Your friend needs you." She released the brunet's hands and left the room, carefully closing the door behind her. Baekhyun slumped down in a quick movement to sit on the couch.</p>
<p>The tall boy was surprised his mother had said that to him and not to Kyungsoo. He looked at the owl-eyed boy, who looked back at him and shrugged. Chanyeol put the guitar on the stand and went across the room to sit carefully next to the brunet. "I'm sorry for sticking my nose in where it doesn't belong-"</p>
<p>"No!" Baekhyun startled both boys with his reaction. His eyes glistened, and instead of looking mad the brunet actually had an earnest expression on his face as he looked up at the taller boy. "You do have- I mean- I know you had the best of intentions.. and I appreciate that." </p>
<p>Chanyeol visibly relaxed, slouching down on the couch beside the hazel-eyed boy. "Ohhh I'm so glad you're not mad. I was really worried." </p>
<p>Baekhyun wiped his eyes under his glasses and gave a little smile as he looked over at Kyungsoo. The dark-headed boy gave a small smile and nod back. Then he turned to the piano and began slowly picking out a few chords. "Baek is really good at piano.. I can help with harmonies and such, but my short fingers don't like to move quickly enough to play nicely." He held his hands up and wiggled his fingers comically. The other two chuckled at his actions, the humor easing the tension in the room.</p>
<p>The tall boy got up and went back over, taking his guitar off the stand. "So maybe you could write out the stuff we come up with? There's staff paper on the desk.." </p>
<p>Kyunsoo immediately jumped up. "Great idea!" He went over and sat at the desk, picking up a pencil and looking expectantly at Chanyeol. The lanky boy grinned and turn around to look at Baekhyun.</p>
<p>The brunet looked at the two of them with a cookie already in his mouth. "Whuu?" he voiced, looking caught in the act. The other two burst out laughing.</p>
<p>"Ok, maybe we need a little extra energy food before we start.." Chanyeol grinned widely as he set the guitar back down again and went over to the plate of cookies. The dark-headed boy made a noise of agreement and came over to claim a cookie for himself. </p>
<p>The three boys enjoyed their time together. They talked thru song ideas and figured out a possible melody for their Music Appreciation project. When their lunch arrived, they chose to sit in the kitchen around the island with the two pizza boxes opened, laughing and talking together comfortably. All too soon the large grandfather clock in the hallway chimed at the 2:30 mark, and it was time to clean up and go to the school for the basketball game. </p>
<p>Kyungsoo was still helping with throwing away the trash in the kitchen when Baekhyun ran out towards the family room. Chanyeol watched as the brunet made a point of bowing and thanking Mr. and Mrs. Park for allowing the boys to visit so freely in their home. The dark-headed boy spoke quietly for only the taller to hear. "He was so nervous earlier, wanting to make a good impression on your family. He- " Kyungsoo stopped himself. When Chanyeol looked at him, he only smiled and shook his head. At that point Baekhyun came bouncing back over, smiling from ear to ear.</p>
<p>They were ready to leave and Baekhyun had rode with Kyungsoo, so they climbed in his car and Chanyeol got into his blue BMW, and they all headed to the school. Arriving at the familiar parking lot, they pulled their cars into spaces right beside each other.</p>
<p>As they climbed out of their cars, Chanyeol spoke up. "I realized on the way over here that I never got to show you the rest of my house. And I definitely have to show you my room next time." The other two boys looked very interested as the tall senior continued. "You'd love it - it's got huge windows that let in so much sun it almost makes my skin glow, and my hair and eyes look lighter, like they're a different color." he smiled.</p>
<p>"Wow.." Baekhyun commented as he adjusted his glasses on his face. </p>
<p>"Yeah, our housekeeper's eyes are naturally a little lighter anyway, but when she's in that room they almost look blue. Not as light as my shirt, but I <strong>have</strong> seen that color eyes before.." the taller continued. "I think some blue eyes can be pretty, don't you..?" he asked casually as he looked at the hazel-eyed boy.</p>
<p>Baekhyun looked at Chanyeol with an unreadable expression. Kyungsoo looked between the two awkwardly then quickly slipped his hand around the smaller's arm and gave a deliberate smile as he began to pull his friend towards the school. "Come ON! I don't want to be late and end up with a crappy seat!" The brunet seemed to come back to his senses as he laughed at the dark-headed boy's antics and adjusted his speed to match Kyungsoo's power-walking. The tall senior followed along behind closely, a smile on his face but his thoughts turning. </p>
<p>They entered the gym thru a side door and made their way over to the bleachers. The crowd attending was small, and it was easy to find a good spot for the three of them to sit. Baekhyun sat beside his owl-eyed friend, and Chanyeol chose to sit directly behind them. The basketball players were warming up and not paying much attention to the crowd that had gathered to watch the game. </p>
<p>Kyungsoo seemed dissapointed that Jongin hadn't noticed them come in, so Chanyeol decided to do what he knew would get the basketball player's attention. The tall senior cupped his hands around his mouth like a megaphone and yelled, "<strong>HEY NINI</strong>!"</p>
<p>Jongin immediately whipped his head towards the sound of his friend yelling, while several of his teammates were also distracted by the outburst. Chanyeol grinned as he reached down between the two friends sitting in front of him and grabbed each of their wrists, waving their hands at the now embarrassed basketball player. The two boys caught on to what was going on, and they laughed as they comically waved. Jongin smiled sheepishly as he waved back at the three silly boys.</p>
<p>The three on the bleachers chatted casually as they waited for the game to start, talking about the basketball players, the dirty gym corners, the coach's funny shorts, and how hard the seats were. Chanyeol noticed Baekhyun's eyes lingering on his blue shirt a couple of times, but he didn't bring it up and did his best to keep the conversation light and fun. The lanky boy had his suspicions but he didn't want to cause any discomfort. </p>
<p>Soon the coach blew his whistle and the team gathered around for a last minute talk. Suddenly Baekhyun whacked Kyungsoo on the arm, but the owl-eyed boy seemed to be in a daze as he watched the players on the court. Half of the basketball team had taken off their shirts while the other half left theirs on to signify the two opposite teams for the game. And one of the shirtless musclebound boys walking around was the tanned boy that lately had been paying a lot of attention to Baekhyun's dark-headed friend.</p>
<p>Chanyeol grinned as he watched Kyungsoo visibly gulp then start to squirm a little on the hard seat. The tall senior leaned down to speak into the brunet's ear. "I'm going to get us some drinks from the vending machine. He looks thirsty.."  Baekhyun's cackling response echoed in Chanyeol's ear and he grinned as he jogged out of the gym. </p>
<p>About 5 minutes later the tall senior was back at his seat, handing out cold waters to the boys in front of him.</p>
<p>"<strong>Any score yet?</strong>" he leaned over between them and asked loudly.</p>
<p>Baekhyun half-turned and placed his hand on Chanyeol's knee for balance as he stretched up to yell over the noises of the game. "<strong>4 to 6.</strong>." His voice trailed off as his eyes met the taller's. They looked at each other steadily for a moment then the brunet colored prettily and turned back towards the game, taking his hand back down to fiddle with his bottle of water.</p>
<p>Chanyeol internally sulked at the loss of contact. </p>
<p>But then unexpectedly the shorter leaned slightly as he took a drink of his water, resting his back against the lanky boy's knee. Even as he brought the drink back down and secured the cap to safely continue cheering for the game, the brunet didn't lean back forward. From that point on thru the rest of the game, Chanyeol had a hard time concentrating on anything other than the slight pressure on his knee and shin. He clapped and yelled words of encouragement for Jongin and the other players, but felt so distracted that he made a mental note to apologise to his tanned friend later. He knew the basketball player would understand. Afterall, when Kyungsoo had whooped loudly when Jongin made his first basket of the game, the poor boy's tanned skin turned pink from blushing so hard. </p>
<p>All too soon the game was over and the final score showed the "skins" side of the team had won by 4 points. The team gathered around the coach for last minute instructions while the crowd on the bleachers applauded and then began to slowly leave the gym. Chanyeol and the two shorter boys stood up and lingered at the edge of the basketball court, making idle chatter as they waited. Pretty soon Jongin came rushing over with a towel around his neck, covering most of his naked chest. "Hey! I have to shower, but then maybe we can go get burgers.. or something?" </p>
<p>"Actually, I need to get home.. but Kyungsoo is free to go, right Kyungie?" the brunet grinned as he offered for his friend. </p>
<p>The dark-headed boy blushed as he stammered. "Well..! I, um.. yeah."</p>
<p>Chanyeol knew a chance when he saw one. "Perfect! I can take Baekhyun home, and Kyungsoo can wait for you to shower then drive you to get burgers!"</p>
<p>Baekhyun shot a glance at the tall boy. "Perfect..!" he echoed. Then he turned back to the basketball player. "Great game by-the-way..! Looks like you guys are really ready for the season!"</p>
<p>Jongin had seen the glance between the two, but he deliberately didn't make a big deal about it. He just added it to the list of things to ask his friend about later. Instead he smiled broadly at the three others.  "Yeah we think so! And as long as all you guys keep coming to the games, we'll have the best cheering section in the division!"</p>
<p>Chanyeol whooped loudly. "<strong>YEAH MAN!</strong>" The sound echoed, pointing out how empty the gym was becoming. The tall senior pointed towards the locker room. "You better go shower quick! We'll wait for you outside.."</p>
<p>The basketball player nodded and grinned as he took off running in the direction the taller had pointed. They laughed at his enthusiasm as he slipped going around the corner. Baekhyun looked at Chanyeol as the three of them began walking towards the exit door. "So.. why do you not play basketball? You seem athletic enough, and your height <span class="u"><strong>would</strong></span> be an advantage." the brunet grinned. "You could even play volleyball or something.."</p>
<p>The tall senior smiled as he held the door open for the other two boys. "Yeah..  I never was into playing sports much. I've always been better at playing video games than games like basketball or soccer or such. I never tried to build muscle, so I figured I'd settle on being a tall musician instead."  They all walked slowly, enjoying the afternoon sunshine.</p>
<p>"Must be nice to be so tall.." Kyungsoo said wistfully. "You can see everything from up there! You're like a tree or something!" he grinned.</p>
<p>Chanyeol burst out laughing and the other two boys laughed along with him as they got closer to their parked cars.</p>
<p><em>You're so tall. And so HO</em><em>T.</em> <em>I wanted to climb you like a damn tree as soon as I saw you walk in tonight. </em></p>
<p>"Chanyeol?" Baekhyun waved his hand in front of the tall boy's face. "You ok?"  </p>
<p>The lanky boy hadn't realized he had stopped walking. "Uh.. yeah!" He pulled out his keys, hitting the button to unlock his car doors. "I was just-" </p>
<p>"Hey guys!" Jongin yelled as he ran out the side doors of the gym. His hair was dripping and he obviously had rushed through his shower.</p>
<p>Kyungsoo stood a little straighter as soon as he saw the tanned basketball player. Chanyeol nudged the brunet as he grinned and subtly pointed at the dark-haired boy. Baekhyun grinned widely back at the taller and wiggled his eyebrows before walking over to the blue BMW. "So I guess we'll see you later then, Kyungie?" he called to his friend.</p>
<p>The dark-headed boy shot him a brief look of panic, but then seemed to think of something. "And you get <span class="u"><strong>home</strong></span> safe,Bee..!"</p>
<p>Chanyeol noticed that Baekhyun reacted with a quick look of panic of his own before turning to open the car door and slide in, closing it quickly behind him. The tall senior smiled at the brunet's actions, then looked over the car to where Kyungsoo was still standing. "I <strong>will</strong> take care of him. ." the taller said reassuringly.</p>
<p>The owl-eyed boy nodded seriously at him then turned to Jongin with a shy smile. "Let's go..? " </p>
<p>The two got into Kyungsoo's car and Chanyeol got into his own car.  Baekhyun was already buckled in and looking down at his phone.  His son's picture showed on the screen for a second, but then he turned his phone screen off. He looked over at the tall senior. "How much time do you have today?" Baekhyun asked. </p>
<p>"I've got plenty of time. Why?" Chanyeol responded kindly.  </p>
<p>The brunet looked down at the dark screen on his phone.  "I was thinking... Did you want to meet him?" </p>
<p>The taller knew exactly who the "him" was, and he couldn't contain his grin.  "I would LOVE to meet him!" He started the car. "Where are we going?!" he asked, continuing to smile widely as he began backing out of the parking place. </p>
<p>Baekhyun waved cheerfully to Kyungsoo and Jongin in the other car as they pulled away.  Then he turned back to face the front, almost bouncing on the seat.  "OK! So..turn left here.." he grinned happily as he began giving directions for Chanyeol to follow.  </p>
<p>As they drove, the two talked easily with each other, both comfortable with the other's company. At one point Baekhyun laughed so hard at something they had said, that he had to take his glasses off and wipe his eyes. Immediately after he did that, he seemed to be in a hurry to put them back on again. Chanyeol glanced over but then looked back at the road, paying attention to the traffic. "They look good on you.. the glasses. But I think you look good with them off too." he said carefully.</p>
<p>The brunet shifted a little nervously on the seat. "Yeah..?"</p>
<p>"Yeah.."  The taller knew he might be pushing his luck a little, but he wanted to know. "Do you ever wear contacts..?"</p>
<p>Baekhyun had a cautious expression on his face. "I have in the past..." he said, a little quieter. His eyes flickered over to the lanky boy but didn't linger.</p>
<p>"Hmm.." Chanyeol gave an interested hum, but didn't comment. </p>
<p>The hazel-eyed boy pointed to the next intersection. "Turn left there and then take the second right."  The taller drove carefully as he followed the instructions, pulling into a quiet subdivision. "It's the fourth house on the right.." Baekhyun said, turning on the screen of his phone. He typed out a quick message and then turned his phone screen back off just as Chanyeol was bringing the car to a stop in front of an upscale condo-style home. </p>
<p>The tall senior turned the car off and pulled his keys out of the ignition, but didn't climb out of the car yet. The smaller boy seemed to be thinking about something as he stared down at the blank screen on his phone. Chanyeol noticed the brunet seemed a little nervous, and he reached out to gently touch the smaller boy's hand. "Hey.. I don't have to meet him if you don't want me to... It's ok." </p>
<p>"No you have every right- I mean- I want you to meet him. I want him to meet you." Baekhyun responded. He took a deep breath then looked up at the taller. "Can I ask you something?"</p>
<p>The question interrupted what Chanyoel had intended to say, but he recovered quickly. "I- um.. Sure!" </p>
<p>"What would you say if someone kept a really big secret from you?" </p>
<p>"Baekhyun, I already know about your son-"</p>
<p>"No it's not that. I mean, it is.. but.. there's more.." Baekhyun looked back down at his lap.</p>
<p>Chanyeol felt his heart sink. He had been so attracted to this boy for such a long time, but things had been going almost too well this past week. Maybe the hazel-eyed boy wasn't dating anyone because he was already taken. Maybe the person who was waiting inside the house with Baekhyun's son was the other father. Maybe he-</p>
<p>"Two years ago.." The brunet's nervous voice snapped the tall senior out of his thoughts. "..I didn't have this dark hair." He looked at Chanyeol and waited until their eyes met before he continued. "I had blonde hair." Baekhyun said. </p>
<p>"...and sometimes wore contacts..?" Chanyeol offered quietly. </p>
<p>"Yeah.." The brunet gave a little smile, then continued. "Anyway, so that year my school had a late fall break so I came to the city to visit my cousin Junmyeon and I went to a party with him and some of his friends. There were a few kids from a couple of other schools there too." Baekhyun tapped his fingers nervously on his phone a little. "I didn't plan to get drunk and I was just sipping my drink, but when I saw this gorgeous guy walk in I downed my cup without even realizing how much alcohol was in there. Turns out the guy didn't seem all that happy about the girls that kept trying to get his attention, so I thought I might have a chance, you know..?" The brunet watched the tall boy for any reaction as he told his story. "I watched him for like- an hour or something.. I dunno, I lost track of the time with just how adorable he was as he got more and more drunk."</p>
<p>Chanyeol looked at Baekhyun with a soft expression but didn't say anything, just letting him continue. The hazel-eyed boy gave a little huff, as tho bracing himself to finish his story and tapped his fingers some more. "He was like, hot and cute at the same time, and eventually I couldn't stand it anymore, so I just grabbed him and pulled him into one of the bedrooms. I didn't have a plan, but I couldn't stop myself. He was just SO GORGEOUS, and I hadn't had sex before but I just HAD to have him. We were both drunk but he made me feel really good and gave me all sorts of compliments the whole time. I felt like we really connected and I was really happy and didn't feel bad about it or anything.. until the end." </p>
<p>By now the tall senior had reached over and grasped the brunet's nervous hand, holding it softly to stop the figiting. Surprisingly, the smaller entertwined their fingers and began rubbing the back of Chanyeol's hand in an intimate gesture. It was more than what "just friends" would do, and the taller held his breath as he allowed himself a sliver of hope. </p>
<p>"So.." Chanyeol cleared his throat to work through his emotions. "Why.. why did- what happened..?" he asked quietly. </p>
<p>Baekhyun stared at their joined hands. "I had just finished when he told me I had beautiful eyes." he said softly. "I was wearing colored contacts but the guy didn't know. It hit me like a ton of bricks that I had just had sex with a total stranger, and I panicked. Within minutes of him finishing he cuddled up with the blanket, so I just threw my clothes on as quiet as possible and ran. I saw the tanned guy he had come in with so I told them where he was, then I found my cousin and said I felt sick and wanted to go home." </p>
<p>The car was silent for a moment. </p>
<p>"You know..." Chanyeol said gently,  "I knew they couldn't be your real color, but I still dreamt about blue eyes for weeks after that."  Baekhyun looked up at the taller in shock. Chanyeol smiled softly and continued. "Jongin took really good care of me while I got over my hangover, but.. he knows my heart has never really recovered even after all this time." </p>
<p>"Chanyeol I need to tell you-" the brunet started.</p>
<p>"It's ok if you don't feel the same way-" the taller interrupted.</p>
<p>"No, I do but you may not-" the brunet cut him off.</p>
<p>"But I do-"</p>
<p>"'Chanyeol! He's yours!" Baekhyun blurted out loudly.</p>
<p>"Wait- what..?"</p>
<p>"We didn't use protection.." the hazel-eyed boy said slowly. "And I- hhh-", his shoulders sagged with a sigh. "I don't sleep around. At all."</p>
<p>The tall senior looked blankly ahead as he tried to process the smaller's words. The hazel-eyed boy quickly put his phone down and gripped both of Chanyeol's hands in his own. "I know this might change how you feel about me and I can deal with that." he said earnestly. "I'm not asking for anything, I just- I just wanted you to know. You deserve to know." he continued. "And.. Junseo deserves to know his other father."</p>
<p>Chanyeol slowly looked down at their joined hands. He sat thinking for a minute.</p>
<p>Then a soft smile crept back onto his face. "<span class="u"><strong>You</strong></span> deserve to know.. I told Jongin.. that I met the love of my life that night." </p>
<p>Baekhyun was surprised for a second then looked a little uncertain as he slowly asked. "But..?"</p>
<p>The tall boy looked up to smile directly at the worried brunet. "But I didn't know I helped create another great love of my life in the same night." </p>
<p>A loud sob of relief and joy exploded out of Baekhyun as he launched himself across the seat into Chanyeol's waiting arms. The two clung to each other, enjoying the feeling of finally being where they had both wanted to be for so long. The taller cradled the crying boy, gently petting his head and making comforting shushing noises as he smiled into the brunet's soft hair.</p>
<p>The sounds of the brunet's sniffling was suddenly interrupted by the "Baby Shark" song playing from his phone. The two broke apart from their hug, laughing.</p>
<p>"It's 5:45." Baekhyun said, wiping his eyes as he turned off the alarm on his phone. "Time for Junnie's dinner." </p>
<p>Chanyeol immediately looked very excited and interested. "Can we go help?" he asked eagerly.</p>
<p>The hazel-eyed boy grinned through the last of his tears. "Are you prepared to get pureed carrots and chunks of fruit on your clothes? He throws things when he's excited, and lately eating big-boy food has been really exciting for him..." </p>
<p>The tall boy reached for his door handle. "Bring it on!" he grinned. </p>
<p>Baekhyun laughed as he opened his passenger door. "Oh, he will..  Don't worry!" </p>
<p>Both boys got out and the taller locked the car doors as he waited for the brunet to come around the car. Half-way up the walkway he stopped the boy from walking towards the house. Baekhyun furrowed his eyebrows. "Chanyeol?" he asked, suddenly unsure. </p>
<p>The tall senior took one of the smaller hands. "I wanted to ask you.. If you would go out with me..?" </p>
<p>The hazel-eyed boy flushed and looked at the taller with amazement. "You want to date me?"</p>
<p>"What part of 'love of my life' did you not understand?" Chanyeol asked, teasing the blushing brunet. </p>
<p>"I know you said that," Baekhyun said, as his skin turned pinker, "but I thought it changed with Junnie being here now.." his voice got quieter.</p>
<p>"Junseo is very important, but I would still feel this way about you even if we didn't create him that night." the tall senior said seriously. </p>
<p>The blushing boy looked extremely pleased. "Oh..!"</p>
<p>"Oh. .K?" Chanyeol leaned down to get closer to the pink-faced boy in a teasing manner.</p>
<p>The smaller unexpectedly looped his arms around the taller's neck. "OK.." the brunet said quietly with a soft smile, and pecked the tall senior on the nose. Chanyeol made a surprised yet pleased sound and grinned at the hazel-eyed boy. He circled his own arms around the smaller's waist, linking his hands together at Baekhyun's lower back. The two looked at each other quietly for a moment, then the tall boy slowly leaned down. The brunet understood the action and closed his eyes as their lips met in a soft kiss. </p>
<p>The sound of a door opening, followed by a baby's loud squeal of "PA!" interrupted the sweet moment. Baekhyun turned his head towards where a familiar looking man was standing at the open door with the baby in his arms. Chanyeol remembered him as the man that had been at the hospital with the baby earlier that week. "Junnie! How's my pumpkin?" the brunet called enthusiastically. The little boy kicked happily at seeing his father who was still being hugged by the tall boy. The pair broke apart but the smaller reached his hand to entertwine their fingers again before leading the tall senior the rest of the way up the walkway and into the house.</p>
<p>As soon as they came in the door, Baekhyun took Junseo into his arms and turned to the tall boy beside him. Big matching eyes looked at each other with wonder and the brunet smiled broadly at them both. "Junnie.. this is your Daddy. Can you say Hi?" Baekhyun said softly.</p>
<p>Chanyeol smiled and waved his hand at the little boy. "Hi Junnie! It's nice to meet you.."</p>
<p>The baby acted a little shy and leaned his head into his father's chest, but he smiled sweetly and didn't fuss. Chanyeol was immediately smitten, and he cooed at the cute act. Baekhyun grinned. "Daddy is gonna help us with dinner time today!" he said enthusiastically. The baby obviously understood what his father had said, and he began to wiggle and make excited babbling noises.</p>
<p>"You remember my cousin, Junmyeon.." The brunet said as he turned towards the kitchen area and his cousin, but he saw that Junmyeon had turned his back and was wiping his eyes. Baekhyun gestured to the baby chair that was already set up next to the table. "Hey Chanyeol, can you- um.. hang on.." He started to move the baby to his hip so he could maneuver the tray of the baby chair, but the tall boy put his hands out towards the little one.</p>
<p>"I can hold him.. if that's ok..?" Chanyeol said tentatively.</p>
<p>"Yes..!" The hazel-eyed boy looked at Junseo. "Daddy is going to hold you while Papa fixes your tray, OK?"  </p>
<p>The baby looked at his father then turned and looked up at the tall boy again. Chanyeol smiled and put his hands out in a grabbing gesture. To everyone's surprise the baby smiled and leaned towards Chanyeol's hands, obviously comfortable with the situation. Chanyeol took the little boy into his arms and cooed at him, bouncing just a little as the baby babbled a bit. Baekhyun stood as tho in a trance as he watched the sweet scene. The sound of a camera shutter made them look over at Junmyeon, who was holding his phone up while smiling thru more tears.</p>
<p>"Make sure you send me a copy of that." Baekhyun said.</p>
<p>"Me too!" the tall boy echoed.</p>
<p>Junseo squealed happily in Chanyeol's arms. "You too Junnie?" Chanyeol asked playfully. The other two laughed and Junmyeon began taking more pictures as Baekhyun fixed the tray area for the baby's seat. </p>
<p>True to the warning, Chanyeol did end up with some "big-boy food" on his shirt, but he didn't mind. After they all enjoyed dinner, Junmyeon insisted on doing some laundry and loaned the tall boy a shirt while the dirtied blue t-shirt was being washed. As they waited they sat in the living room and took turns playing with the baby. They talked about Junmyeon's school, where Baekhyun was working, and how Baekhyun and Junseo had ended up coming to live with Junmyeon. </p>
<p>Baekhyun's parents lived far out in the country, so he and his son were living with Junmyeon while Baekhyun was in his senior year of high school. The plan had been for Baekhyun to attend the prestigious prep school earlier in his high school career, since it would be great help for being prepared for college. But when the pregnancy happened he decided to wait to change schools until the baby was at least a year old. The brunet's cousin was a college student, 3 years older and living in his own condo while he attended his classes. The size and location of the home had been ideal for Baekhyun to bring Junseo and move in with him. Junmyeon's mother was happy to come to watch the baby whenever both of the boys were busy with school.</p>
<p>Junmyeon made it very clear that he was relieved Chanyeol was so accepting of everything that had happened. The tall boy explained his own situation and family values, which made Baekhyun cry and Junmyeon eager to meet the wonderful people that had raised such a smart boy. This reminded Chanyeol that he needed to let his mother know his evening plans, and he excused himself onto the back porch of the house to make a phone call. </p>
<p>"Mom?" the tall boy greeted his mother, trying to keep the nervousness out of his voice. He should have known she could read him like a book.</p>
<p>"Everything alright?" she immediately asked.</p>
<p>"Yeah. Everything's.. great, actually." The events of the afternoon and the newly confirmed knowledge seemed to hit him like a ton of bricks. Chanyeol felt himself tearing up. "I have <span class="u"><strong>so</strong></span> much to tell you. I already ate dinner out, but I won't be too late getting home tonight."</p>
<p>"I'll wait up for you. I didn't let your dad finish off the cookies, so there should be a few left for us to enjoy a late-night snack when you get back." Mrs. Park said kindly.</p>
<p>"Thanks Mom. I'll talk to you later." the tall boy responded and ended the call. He knew his parents would be in shock about the news, but they would also be ecstatic to be grandparents. They would be a big help in making sure Junseo was a happy, healthy baby. And they would love Baekhyun. </p>
<p>As tho he knew the tall boy was thinking about him, the brunet opened the sliding door to the porch. "Everything ok?" he asked.</p>
<p>Chanyeol reached out and took the shorter's hand, pulling him in for a gentle hug. "Mom asked the same thing." he chuckled. Baekhyun hummed a short sound of humor against the taller's chest but didn't say anything. Chanyeol could tell the boy was nervous, and he tightened his embrace a little. "I'm going to tell her everything when I get home tonight." he said carefully. The smaller tensed in his arms. Chanyeol put his hand on the brunet's head. "It will be fine. My parents already love you, and this will give them even more to love. Don't worry."</p>
<p>"How can I<strong> <span class="u">not</span> </strong>worry?? I'm the boy that defiled their son when he was drunk and got pregnant, and then kept the baby a secret from him for 2 years! You can't tell me to not worry!" Baekhyun flailed in the taller's embrace. "I am <span class="u"><strong>worried</strong></span>, OK??" He slung his arms back around the taller in a tighter hug as he pouted and huffed. </p>
<p>Chanyeol made consoling shushing noises. "Hey. shh.. Hey! It's ok.. shhh..." he said, running his fingers throught the brunet's bangs. Then the taller chuckled. </p>
<p>The smaller pulled back as tho offended, but Chanyeol was quick to explain. "They're still a little wet." he said, lifting the hairs with his fingers. After dinner Baekhyun had to rinse out some pureed vegetables, compliments of Junseo's enthusiasm. Now, the damp hairs helped them break up the serious tone of their conversation. </p>
<p>Baekhyun sighed and leaned back to be able to look up at the tall senior, then smiled softly. "It's time to put Junnie to bed. Did you want to help?" he asked.</p>
<p>Chanyeol nodded in eager agreement and followed the smaller back inside. Sure enough, Junseo was almost totally asleep in his uncle's arms. Junmyeon handed the baby to Baekhyun, and then the brunet led the way down the short hallway to a mid-sized room. He switched on a lamp as he walked into the room with the tall boy trailing behind him. </p>
<p>A crib was set up in a corner of the room and a low dresser was next to it. The dresser top had high edges around it and a small soft blanket was inside the area, creating a changing area for the child. Baekhyun brought the sleepy baby over and laid him on the top of the dresser in the safe area, then opened the top drawer of the dresser and pulled out a new diaper and a clean onesie. Chanyeol watched as Baekhyun expertly undressed Junseo and changed the baby's diaper, then quickly slipped the clean clothing onto the child.</p>
<p>"You make that look so easy." the tall boy whispered in awe.</p>
<p>The brunet smiled. "I've had a lot of practice." he said quietly.</p>
<p>"You've done a great job with him." Chanyeol responded. </p>
<p>Baekhyun stepped a little to the side, keeping his hand on the baby's stomach. "You can practice some and put him in his crib if you want."</p>
<p>The brunet chuckled as the tall boy's eyes lit up like he'd just won the lottery. Junseo stirred a little at his father's quiet laughter, and Chanyeol immediately reached over and carefully picked up the baby. He gently bounced as he began humming under his breath. The little one seemed to sense he was in secure hands and settled back down easily in the taller's embrace. Chanyeol smoothly moved over to the crib as he hummed, leaning over slowly to place the baby down on his back in the center of the small mattress. He pulled a light blanket from the corner of the crib and spread it over the baby's lower torso. The whole time the look of complete adoration never left his face. He stood and watched the baby breathing a little bit, then turned to speak to the brunet. </p>
<p>Any words the tall boy planned to say were lost when he saw the hazel-eyed boy holdling his hand over his mouth as he held back tears. Chanyeol stepped over and wrapped his arms around the smaller in a warm embrace. The brunet gripped the borrowed shirt and pushed his forehead into the taller's chest. Time seemed to stand still as they stood wordlessly together. The sleeping child's breathing echoed softly in the room. </p>
<p>Baekhyun had calmed down and Chanyeol had started to enjoy their matched breathing patterns when a soft knock sounded at the door. Both boys looked over as the door opened and Baekhyun's cousin leaned his head in. "The laundry is clean and dry now.." he said. </p>
<p>"Thank you." Chanyeol said quietly. Junmyeon nodded and walked away, leaving the boys in the slightly darkened room. The tall boy pulled his phone out and looked at the time. "I should probably go home soon." he said. </p>
<p>The brunet nodded and lead the way out of the room, leaving the door opened just a little. They walked down the hallway together to the kitchen where Chanyeol's cleaned shirt was hanging over the back of one of the kitchen chairs. When he saw it, he quickly pulled the borrowed shirt up over his head. As he lifted the blue t-shirt up to put it on, he noticed Baekhyun shamelessly checking out his naked chest. Chanyeol smirked. "Like what you see?" he asked, deliberately dropping his voice an octave.</p>
<p>"That's the third time you've said that to me." the brunet said, his face a little flushed. The taller lifted an eyebrow with a smirk but waited for Baekhyun to continue. The smaller moved a little closer to be able to run his fingers over the toned stomach of the topless boy. "And every time it sounds <span class="u"><strong>so</strong></span> damn sexy..." he breathed out in almost a whisper.</p>
<p>Chanyeol groaned in response "Mmmh.. Damn." He slipped his shirt on quickly. "You don't know how much I would love to keep talking with you about this.." he wrapped his arms around the smaller and leaned down a little to speak into Baekhyun's ear. "But we'll have to wait for another time when there are less witnesses."  </p>
<p>The brunet giggled. "I look forward to that.." he said. He pulled out from the taller's arms then grabbed his hand to lead Chanyeol towards the front door. </p>
<p>"Thank you for a fun and enlightening evening..!" The tall boy called out to the living room where Baekhyun's cousin was sitting on the sofa and working on some schoolwork. Junmyeon smiled widely and raised a hand to wave goodbye then went back to his studying.</p>
<p>At the doorway Chanyeol turned suddenly and gave the brunet a tight hug. "Thank you." he whispered. </p>
<p>Baekhyun was confused. "For what?" </p>
<p>"For not hating me for getting you pregnant. For letting me meet our son. For being such a good father. For coming back into my life. I think-  no, I KNOW I missed you more than I was willing to admit to myself. And here you are, letting me be in your life so freely. I'm overwhelmed. I really am.. Thank you." The tall boy had spoken clearly through his explanation, but he sniffed back tears at the last part. </p>
<p>The brunet choked back his own emotion. "Stop or you're gonna make me cry. I've done enough of that.." </p>
<p>Chanyeol loosened his hold just enough to reach for the smaller's chin and lift it to let their lips meet. The gentle kiss started sweet but it lasted a while and began to get heated as their hands began to move, caresses turning daring in the hug. After a moment the taller pulled back. "OK I <span class="u"><strong>have</strong></span> to go." he said lowly, pecking the smaller's lips a few times more.</p>
<p>The brunet sighed and pulled back. "I know.. Can I get a rain-check?" he asked cheekily.</p>
<p>The tall senior laughed. "Absolutely." He pecked the smaller on the nose then pulled away from the hug, dragging his keys out of his pocket. "Have a good day at work tomorrow."</p>
<p>"Thanks!" Baekhyun watched the tall boy walk towards his blue BMW. "Drive safely.." he called after him.</p>
<p>Chanyeol grinned as he turned around. "I'll text you when I get home!" he called back.</p>
<p>"You'd better!" the smaller grinned back.</p>
<p>The tall boy unlocked the doors, climbed in, and started the car. He gave one last wave before pulling out onto the street. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>As soon as he parked the car at his house, Chanyeol texted Baekhyun to let him know he was home. Then he climbed out of his car and went inside.</p>
<p>He walked into the kitchen where his mother had placed a small plate of cookies on the island and was pulling the milk out from the refrigerator. She gestured to two empty glasses. "Want some?" He nodded in agreement and sat down on a kitchen stool. When the glasses were filled the tall senior pulled one over. Right at that moment his phone buzzed with a text message from [💗🐝]. He smiled as he looked at it and sent a quick reply, then turned the phone face-down on the countertop. </p>
<p>"Wanna tell me what's going on?" Mrs. Park asked gently. </p>
<p>The tall boy took a gulp of his milk. "OK.. so.. first of all, we're officially dating now."</p>
<p>His mother squealed. "Oh Honey! Congratulations!" She reached over and patted his hand excitedly. "When do we get to meet his baby?"</p>
<p>Chanyeol chuckled. "I knew you would ask that. Actually, I'm glad you're OK with it, because there's more to the story.. A LOT more."</p>
<p>Mrs. Park smiled understandingly. "There always is.." she picked up a cookie then pushed the plate over to her son.</p>
<p>Chanyeol ignored the cookies and looked directly at his mother. "Mom.. he's the blonde."</p>
<p>"What?? You mean-  from two years ago?" she asked, amazed.</p>
<p>The tall boy nodded. "Yeah. All this week I've been getting flashbacks of things that happened. Apparently my drunk brain from that night remembered the important stuff." </p>
<p>"Oh Honey..." His mother was totally wrapped up in what Chanyeol was saying.</p>
<p>"Yeah, And I also remembered that we did a lot more that night than I originally told you about..."</p>
<p>"You mean.." she put her cookie down slowly.</p>
<p>"His name is Junseo, and he's just over a year old. He's so cute, and smart, and healthy, and.. Mom, he looks <span class="u"><strong>just</strong></span> like me...!" Chanyeol gushed, turning over his phone and opening the gallery to his pictures.</p>
<p>Mrs. Park came around to look at the pictures of her son holding the baby. She smiled, teary-eyed as she took the phone out of his hands and zoomed in a little on the picture. "Oh My! He even has your ears, bless him!" she laughed. </p>
<p>"Mo~om!" Chanyeol protested good-naturedly. He took the phone back and looked down at the picture a little longer, obviously smitten.</p>
<p>His mother put her hand on his shoulder. "But.. are you together just because of him?" she asked carefully.</p>
<p>"No, no... we actually really really like each other. I told him I would want to be with him even if we <span class="u"><strong>hadn't</strong></span> created Junnie that night."</p>
<p>"Oh that's a <strong>GOOD ANSWER</strong>! My own boy is gonna make me swoon...! Making Momma so proud..!" she crooned, fluffing her son's hair affectionately.</p>
<p>Chanyeol giggled as he protested a little bashfully, "Mo~om.." </p>
<p>His giggles died down as his mother hugged him, then pulled back to put her hands firmly on his biceps. "I won't push." she said. "And I'll explain everything to your dad. Just remember, there are a <span class="u"><strong>lot </strong></span>of important things to take into consideration from now on." She looked her tall son straight in the eyes. "That baby and his father are part of our family now. And in this house we treat family with respect, no matter how feelings grow or change."</p>
<p>The tall boy nodded at his mother's serious words. "Don't worry Mom. I already care so much for both of them.. I'm pretty sure the feelings will only grow from now on."</p>
<p>She smiled and then reached over and handed Chanyeol a cookie. Patting him on the back as he took a bite, she continued. "You two just be careful from now on so that you don't give Junseo a sibling for at least a couple of years, OK?'</p>
<p>Chanyeol's big eyes got even bigger as he choked on his cookie. "Mo~om!" he mumbled out through the crumbs.</p>
<p>Mrs. Park laughed and put the glass of milk into his hand. "So.. tell me more about your boyfriend..." </p>
<p>The tall senior took a drink of milk to wash down the cookie before responding. "He's not my boyfriend <strong>yet</strong>.. but we've agreed we're dating so I'll ask him soon. I don't want to stress him out tho. His parents live way out in the country, so right now Junnie and Baekhyun are living with his cousin who is three years older than him. Baekhyun has a part-time job..." he continued to tell his mother about Baekhyun for a while until his phone buzzed again.  </p>
<p>Mrs. Park patted her son on the hand then picked up his empty glass. "That's probably him now. I'll clean up and then go to bed. You go ahead to your room and don't keep your sweetheart up too late. Remember he has to work tomorrow."</p>
<p>Chanyeol leaned over to kiss his mother on the cheek, then grabbed his phone and headed to his room. He checked his phone as he plopped down on his bed and saw that his mother had been right in her guess about the sender of the message. A short and sweet "<em><strong>Goodnight my handsome tree</strong></em>" made him blush and giggle. He responded with an equally cheesy "<em><strong>Sweet dreams my love</strong></em>". He smiled as he changed Baekhyun's ID in his contacts to [💗Junnie's Papa🐝] then connected his phone to his charger and went to take a quick shower.</p>
<p>When he got out of the shower, a quick check of his phone showed that Baekhyun hadn't texted him back, but there <span class="u">was</span> a message from Jongin. Instead of texting back, the tall senor pushed the call button. The basketball player told him how he and Kyungsoo had gotten burgers to go, and sat in the park eating and talking for over two hours before ending their time together. Then he asked about how the tall senior was doing. </p>
<p>Chanyeol spent the next hour explaining to a shocked and amazed Jongin about all the things that the tanned boy had been unaware was going on in the taller's life the last week.</p>
<p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. SUNDAY</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>*SUNDAY*</p>
<p>Chanyeol woke to the sound of his phone buzzing near his ear and squinted at the sunlight streaming thru his window into his eyes. He had forgotten to close his room-darkening curtains before falling asleep, but that didn't matter now that he saw who had sent him a text. Opening the message, he saw a picture of Baekhyun holding Junseo. Both of them were smiling sweetly at the camera and cute little bee and flower emojis were placed in the corners of the picture surrounding the words "<em><strong>Good Morning!</strong></em>"</p>
<p>Chanyeol quickly saved the picture then texted back a "<em><strong>Good morning my loves! Have a good day today!</strong></em>" He knew the brunet would forgive his cheesy enthusiasm.</p>
<p>A check of the time showed it was only 9:30, and his stomach rumbling made the tall senior decide to head to the kitchen for some breakfast. The sound of conversation drifted into the hallway, and he followed it to the kitchen where his parents were sitting at the table. Across from them sat his tanned best friend, enjoying a plate full of scrambled eggs, toast, and sausage. "Nini!" Chanyeol greeted cheerfully. </p>
<p>Jongin rolled his eyes but grinned back as he swallowed his food. "I guess I have to deal with that nickname, now that Soo calls me that." </p>
<p>"Oh, are you two already to the nicknames stage?" Mrs. Park asked the tanned boy excitedly.  Her husband chuckled at her interest in the boy's love life.</p>
<p>Jongin blushed a little as he smiled, but pointed at the tall boy that was at the stove loading up his plate for breakfast. "Thanks to your boy, I think the whole school might be calling me that nickname soon!" </p>
<p>Chanyeol grinned as he came back over to the table with his filled plate. "Kyungsoo was sad you didn't notice him, so I had to make sure you did, that's all.."</p>
<p>Mr. and Mrs. Park laughed at their banter as the boys told them what had happened at the basketball game the previous day. Chanyeol soon caught up with Jongin's eating and when they finished they both took their empty plates to the sink. The boys offered to wash the dishes, but Mrs. Park shooed them away saying that she knew they had better things to do on the last day of their weekend. </p>
<p>After hanging out in Chanyeol's room for a couple of hours, the boys climbed in the blue BMW and drove to the cafe where Baekhyun was working his Sunday shift. Jongin had to nudge his tall friend twice to get his attention after the vision of the brunet in a cute apron and small hat had Chanyeol in a daze. They ordered their lunch, and once it was prepared the tanned boy took a picture of their food to send to Kyungsoo. </p>
<p>About an hour later Baekhyun had a break. He came to sit with them carrying a latte and a blueberry muffin. As soon as the brunet learned that Jongin knew the truth about their relationship, Baekhyun leaned comfortably into Chanyeol's side. The tall boy slipped his arm around the smaller's shoulder and Baekhyun reacted by snuggling even closer as he munched on his food. Jongin grinned from ear to ear and snapped a couple of pictures, choosing the best one to send to Kyungsoo. Within seconds Baekhyun's phone rang and he answered, putting it on speaker phone. The three laughed together as they listened to the owl-eyed boy exclaiming his approval of the developing relationship.</p>
<p>Later that evening as Chanyeol finished his homework he thought back thru the previous week. Just 7 days ago he had gone to sleep trying to not think about the blonde-headed boy that he met 2 years before. And now he was allowed to think about him and talk about him and dream about him all he wanted. It was almost surreal. Almost on cue, Chanyeol's phone buzzed with a text message from the boy of his dreams. They carried on texting and sending pictures to each other for the next 3 hours until Chanyeol noticed the time. He sent a final goodnight message, took a shower, and went to bed.</p>
<p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. MONDAY (new week)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>*MONDAY*</p>
<p>The next morning the whole school seemed to be watching as Chanyeol walked into the building. He knew a lot of people thought he was good looking, so he was used to being watched. But he held the hand of the boy next to him a little tighter as the murmurs began. The feeling he had from the week before was stronger than ever. He realized it was the need to protect the beautiful hazel-eyed boy.</p>
<p>Sure enough, among the gasps he heard the familiar sound of a certain female's voice."What's going on- <strong>Auh</strong>!" the girl huffed as tho very offended. "Chanyeolee~"  she looked at the tall senior as if she were demanding an explanation.</p>
<p>Chanyeol moved their joined hands to pull the smaller behind him, but the brunet pulled on the taller's arm to stop him. Baekhyun then looked squarely over at the girl. "Not every claim has to be explained to everyone all the time." he said firmly. "<span class="u"><strong>Some</strong></span> people understand how these things work." </p>
<p>Kyungsoo had walked into the building behind them with Jongin closely by his side. "Couldn't have said it better myself Baek!" the dark-headed boy said loudly, getting even more attention from the gawking students lining the hallways. </p>
<p>A few teachers had also wandered over to observe the scene. The designer-clad girl turned to them. "Isn't overt dispays of affection on the school grounds against the rules or something?" she asked demandingly. </p>
<p>A couple of the teachers smiled as one spoke up. "It's not sexual in nature and they seem very respectful of each other." Another teacher agreed. "There are no rules being broken Miss Kim."</p>
<p>Chanyeol looked down affectionately at the brunet for a moment then gestured with his head over his shoulder at the two behind them. The boys all started down the hallway towards Kyungsoo and Baekhyun's locker. The designer-clad girl huffed loudly after them, but then turned on her heel and went the opposite direction. </p>
<p>Monday's were the only day of the week that Jongin didn't have basketball practice, and he had made the coffee run for all of them earlier that morning. The four now had matching coffee cups in their hands. As they arrived at the locker Chanyeol released the brunet's hand to put his arm around him in a hug. "Careful..!" Baekhyun warned with a little smile. "I don't want to spill this on you.." </p>
<p>"Sorry love." the taller responded. </p>
<p>Jongin made a face. "Are you gonna be all mushy like that from now on?" he asked, trying to act offended.</p>
<p>Baekhyun giggled. "Oh hush. You're just jealous he can express what he's been holding in for the last two years.." The brunet looked at the basketball player over his coffee cup as he took a sip.</p>
<p>"Why would I be jea- ohh... nevermind." the tanned boy's face was a definite pink as he took a sip of his coffee and glanced nervously over at Kyungsoo.</p>
<p>The dark-headed boy had a matching flush rising on his face and he tried to act like he wasn't listening. He opened the locker door and gestured to Baekhyun. "We need to get on to class soon." As if on cue the first bell rang. </p>
<p>Chanyeol turned his half-hug into a full one then pulled back from the hazel-eyed boy.  "See you later..?"</p>
<p>Baekhyun looked back and forth down the hallway checking for teachers, then leaned up and pecked the taller quickly on the lips. "Later.. yes."</p>
<p>The two grinned at each other until the dark-headed boy closed the locker door, making them jump. Kyungsoo grabbed the brunet's arm and began to pull him down the hallway. "Come on... you can daydream about your loverboy in class." The two waved goodbye as they left for their first class.</p>
<p>Jongin burst out laughing and whacked his tall friend on the shoulder. "Loverboy.. that's accurate!"</p>
<p>Chanyeol kept smiling. "Keep it up and you can have that nickname too... Nini.." He side-stepped the swinging arm of his friend as he laughed. </p>
<p>The boys continued laughing together as they made their way through the usual swarm of students. Jongin went into his first class and Chanyeol went on to his usual corner of the library. He sat down with his coffee and smiled as he looked across the quiet space. His mind filled with thoughts from the previous week and beyond.</p>
<p>Life was good.</p>
<p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. EPILOGUE</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>*EPILOGUE*</p>
<p>As expected, the news that the BMOC was dating spread through the school like wildfire. Where the lunch-time gossips had only speculated the week before, now the rumors ran rampant. Some of the students even began "shipping" them in a sort of fan-club kind of way. Every gesture and exchanged look between the couple was noticed. Even the teachers occasionally stopped in the hallways to watch the tall handsome senior walk by with his large hand laced in the hazel-eyed boy's slender digits.</p>
<p>The four friends found all of these things hilarious, and they secretly laughed together over the chaos that seemed to be happening due to Chanyeol and Baekhyun dating.</p>
<p>Chanyeol hung out at Junmyeon's house a couple of hours on Wednesday evening while Baekhyun was at work. He brought an extra shirt to change into for after Junseo's dinner time, and he enjoyed getting to know Baekhyun's cousin a bit better as well. When the brunet texted to let the tall senior know he had gotten home safely later that night, Chanyeol asked Baekhyun for a "home date" for the next day so that they could spend more time together with their son. Baekhyun agreed, and the following evening he showed off a little of his cooking skills for their meal. Junmyeon went out to dinner with friends so the little family could enjoy each other's company freely.</p>
<p>That evening as they put Junseo down to bed, the tall senior quietly asked the brunet to be his boyfriend. Baekhyun waited until Junnie was securely in his crib and covered in his blanket before turning and embracing Chanyeol. The muffled "Yes" was followed with a sweet kiss. Baekhyun then pulled Chanyeol into the living room away from the sleeping baby's ears and made sure to express his approval of the upgrade in relationship status in a very intimate manner. The tall senior was soon dazed and once again wondering how he got so lucky. His boyfriend simply cooed and patted his cheek before tucking his limp dick back into his pants. </p>
<p>Over the next few days of school some of the more jealous students tried to start problems, but Chanyeol was proud of the brunet for being strong against the nasty rumors. When the basketball team joined Jongin and Kyungsoo in showing their support of the new couple, the issues calmed down to just occasional whispers that Baekhyun and Chanyeol easily ignored. </p>
<p>Every Saturday Kyungsoo and Baekhyun continued to come to Chanyeol's house to work on their Music Appreciation assignment together. Most of the time Jongin would be there as well, hanging out on the floor of the music room and giving his opinion on the progress of the project. He designated himself the "waiter" of their group and made sure they all had drinks and snacks as needed for their work time.</p>
<p>Mr. and Mrs. Park wholeheartedly supported the developing relationship between Junseo's parents. About two weeks after they became an official couple, Baekhyun rode with Junmyeon and brought Junseo over to the Park home to meet his grandparents. The baby was quiet but wide-eyed, taking in all the new surroundings and new people. Chanyeol held his son and Baekhyun sat beside them on the sofa, holding Junnie's hand while talking with Mrs. Park about the pregnancy. Junmyeon sat in a separate chair next to Mr. Park, carrying on their own conversation. Seeing everyone so comfortable with each other made the baby feel at ease as well, and when Baekhyun giggled at something Mrs. Park said, Junseo responded with his own squeal of delight. The happiness on everyone's faces from the baby making himself the center of attention changed the course of the conversations. Very soon little Junnie was enjoying sitting on his grandmother's lap and holding onto his grandfather's fingers.</p>
<p>From that point forward, whenever Baekhyun came to the Park home, the baby visited as well. The Parks sent an open invitation to Baekhyun's parents to reassure their complete support of the hazel-eyed boy and his sweet bundle-of-joy. Mrs. Park also got in contact with Junmyeon's mother and soon the women were sharing baby-sitting duties whenever the boy's were busy. </p>
<p>The four friends often combined study time with their leisurely hang-outs and helped each other with keeping their grades up. Kyungsoo, Baekhyun, and Chanyeol also attended every basketball game at the school. They cheered loudly and often for their friend on the court. It was at one of their after-game hang-outs that Jongin asked Kyungsoo to be his boyfriend. Kyungsoo surprised everyone when he reacted by shouting "<strong>FINALLY!</strong>"</p>
<p>When it was finally time for the Christmas Assembly talent show, the friends were totally ready. Chanyeol sat on a stool in front of the piano as he played guitar, Baekhyun played piano and sang, and Kyungsoo stood to the other side of Chanyeol and sang as well. About half-way through the song, the stage lights dimmed and Jongin surprised everyone with a spotlight dance. Afterall, Jongin had heard the composition more than enough times to join in the friend's presentation. No one had known he was even interested in dance except for the friends and Jongin's mother, so everyone in the audience was amazed. </p>
<p>The presentation was a big success, and after the program ended they went out to find their parents in the audience. As the families mingled and talked of possible plans for a late dinner, the Music Appreciation teacher came over and let the four friends know they had received the highest marks of the night. All the parents were extremely proud of the hard work the friends had put into their presentation. </p>
<p>After agreeing on a restaurant, the families all got into their cars and left the school to head to their dinner. Baekhyun texted Junmyeon and had him bring Junseo and meet them at the restaurant.</p>
<p>Later, as everyone sat around the large circular table at the restaurant, Chanyeol looked around and smiled. Beside him, Baekhyun had his spare hand on Chanyeol's knee under the table, while enjoying conversation with Jongin's mother, who sat on his other side. Jongin sat on the other side of his mother, with his arm around Kyungsoo, seated beside him. Kyungsoo's parents were sitting in the next two seats, admiring little Junnie, who sat in Mr. Park's lap. Mrs. Park was deep in conversation with Junmyeon, who was seated on the other side of Chanyeol.   </p>
<p>Baekhyun noticed his boyfriend had stopped eating, and he leaned toward him slightly. "Everything OK?" he asked quietly.</p>
<p>"Yeah.." Chanyeol nodded, not dropping his smile as he reached up to affectionately tuck a strand of hair behind his boyfriend's ear. "Life is good." </p>
<p> </p>
<p>* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *</p>
<p> </p>
  </div></div>
</body>
</html>